Microsoft Corp has officialy announced that it has completed its acquisition of the Nokia Devices and Services business. The acquisition has been approved by Nokia shareholders and by governmental regulatory agencies around the world, said a Microsoft release, adding that completion of the acquisition marks the first step in bringing these two companies together as a team.
?Today we welcome the Nokia Devices and Services business to our family. The mobile capabilities and assets they bring will advance our transformation,? said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. ?Together with our partners, we remain focused on delivering innovation more rapidly in our mobile-first, cloud-first world.?
Former Nokia President and CEO Stephen Elop, who will serve as executive vice president of the Microsoft Devices Group and report to Nadella, will oversee an expanded devices business that includes Lumia smartphones and tablets, Nokia mobile phones, Xbox hardware, Surface, Perceptive Pixel (PPI) products, and accessories. Microsoft welcomes personnel with deep industry experience in more than 130 sites across 50 countries worldwide, including several factories that design, develop, manufacture, market and sell a broad portfolio of innovative smart devices, mobile phones and services, the release said. As part of the transaction, Microsoft will honour all existing Nokia customer warranties for existing devices, beginning April 25, 2014.
As with any multinational agreement of this size, scale and complexity, Microsoft and Nokia have made adjustments to the deal throughout the close preparation process. This means, the Nokia factory in Chennai and another in Masan, South Korea are out of the deal. Microsoft will welcome approximately 25,000 transferring employees from around the world.
