14 DAY TRIAL // UPDATE, September 13, 2016: As our reader roger has pointed out, the Windows Phone section is back on BLU's website, so the company isn't giving up on the platform. The original report covered an early version of the website redesign, when the Windows Phone category wasn't yet available. Original story below.
According to Microsoft’s new mobile strategy, the company is focusing more on Windows 10 Mobile and leaves partners in the ecosystem to build devices running the operating system, with Redmond believed to be investing in just one model called Surface Phone and due in 2017.
BLU was one of the companies that invested in Windows phones despite the criticism, but it seems like this struggle has finally come to an end, as the manufacturer is ready to give up on Microsoft’s mobile platform and make the switch fully to Android.
Based in South Florida, BLU has recently redesigned its website, and as part of this makeover, the company has removed all Windows Phone references from the page, focusing exclusively on its Android models (via MSPU).
Is this a hint that BLU is switching focus to Android and giving up on Windows Phone? Maybe, but without an official statement to set things straight, what we got is the same secrecy that’s only doing more harm to the Windows Phone community in general.
A top Windows Phone manufacturer
The Windows Phone OEM ecosystem isn’t quite huge, and if BLU indeed leaves the platform to invest in Android exclusively, then Microsoft’s mobile ecosystem is losing one of the top companies that supported the operating system no matter what.
According to AdDuplex data, BLU was one of the top Windows Phone manufacturers after HTC and Samsung, and although its share was super small - approximately 0.30 percent - it still had almost the same market share as larger companies such as Samsung and more than Huawei.
Furthermore, it was one of the companies that moved fast to make the Windows 10 Mobile upgrade available for supported Windows Phone devices, so it’s very clear that, overall, this is a major loss if it’s really happening.
For the moment, there’s still hope that the Windows Phone omission from the new website is just a mistake, so we contacted the company to ask about future plans regarding the platform and will update the article when we have more information to share.
