After all the time and effort (and money) Microsoft put into trying to make Windows Mobile a 3rd alternative in the mobile segment, it finally comes to terms that there's no point in doing so.
That's not really a surprise; but when Microsoft Corporate Vice President for Windows himself (Joe Belfiore) ditches his Windows smartphone and grabs an Android device instead, there are no more excuses.
Sure, MS will honor its commitments and still support Windows 10 mobile with security and bug fixes updates; but Belfiore has stated that the Windows mobile has no longer any focus at MS, neither on the software side nor on the hardware side. So, chances for those "Surface phones" that have been rumored for a while to pop up are slim at best - most likely we'll get to know them a few years from now, and make us wonder if it would have made any difference (answer: no it wouldn't, unless MS had been willing to sell it at cost, but in the process alienating all its partners).
It will be one more of those cases people will look over the years. Microsoft had the lead in the "pocket PC" segment in the pre-smartphone era; but then it let all go to waste as it underestimated a thing called iPhone - and was unable to to react to it. Its careless pushes for Windows Mobile 7 and then 8, and 10, leaving users behind with no updates were just one more thing that made users lack confidence in the platform... and developers decided to focus on Android and iOS instead.
... Now, MS is trying to stay ahead in what's expected to be the "next big thing": Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality (Mixed Reality in MS's parlance). A few years from now we'll be able to see if that bet paid off.
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