Microsoft writes off $7.6 billion Nokia purchase, cuts 7800 jobs

A few weeks ago, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warned that the company faced “hard choices” when it came to products and solutions that weren’t taking the software giant where it wanted to go. When the company announced that it intended to sell part of its mapping service to Uber and its mobile display business to AOL, it turned out to only be the first step. Microsoft has now declared that it will take a $7.6 billion-dollar writeoff on Nokia — more than the $7.2 billion it paid for the company. It will also cut 7800 jobs as part of a restructuring plan.In a memo distributed to Microsoft employees, Nadella remarks that he is “committed to our first-party devices including phones,” but consider the wider implications of the announcement. By writing off more than the purchase price of Nokia (there’s another $750 million to $850 million restructuring fee on top of the $7.6 billion), Nadella is sending a message that conventional handset manufacturing and design isn’t something Microsoft wants to be involved in going forward.