Microsoft has sealed the deal on its acquisition of Finnish phonemaker Nokia.
In a press release, the two companies announced they've finished wrangling with regulators across the globe. Their merger is "now subject only to certain customary closing conditions." (Via The Wall Street Journal)
Microsoft says, "The real value from this integration is bringing two globally sized capabilities in organizations together under one roof, really intimately and much more efficiently."
In the $7.2 billion deal, Microsoft has acquired 25,000 new employees; 8,500 design patents; and, of course, a ton of phones. (Via ZDNet, CNET)
Re/code says it's a new market for Microsoft. The company has built keyboards and Xbox consoles for some time, but "those efforts will pale in comparison to being a global provider of cell phones."
That means tens of millions of handsets a year, which accounts for a full 90 percent of the market for Windows Mobile devices, according to GigaOM.
Nokia's phone division will be rebranded as Microsoft Mobile. Former Nokia CEO Stephen Elop will serve as executive VP of the Microsoft Devices Group, reporting to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.
Once the dust settles, Microsoft says it wants to get down to shipping more devices with Microsoft services.
Analysts are looking for the same — one tells PCWorld the smartphone market "isn't moving forward quite as quickly as it has in the past. While it is taking a breather, Microsoft and Nokia can up the game and try to close the gap."
Numbers from IDC project Windows Mobile will be the fastest-growing mobile OS market over the next four years.
Microsoft isn't getting into specific timelines yet, of course. Elop will be taking questions about the closing Monday on Nokia's website.
