Did you know Microsoft spent $1bn on phones it killed in 48 days?
Microsoft's Kin One and Kin Two phones were discontinued just 48 days after their 2010 launch despite a $1 billion development investment. The failure was attributed to a lack of essential features like an app store and poor market positioning against the rising iPhone and Android.
Why it matters
This serves as a classic case study in corporate product failure, illustrating the risks of misreading market trends and consumer needs in the tech industry.
Home News World Sports Entertainment Science Royal Trending Health Videos Technology Technology Did you know Microsoft spent $1bn on phones it killed in 48 days? The Kin One and Kin Two burned two years of development and roughly $1 billion before Microsoft pulled the plug
Microsoft spent close to two years and an estimated $1 billion building the Kin One and Kin Two, then killed both phones just 48 days after they reached Verizon stores in May 2010.
Few tech products have collapsed that fast after that much investment, and the story behind the collapse started long before launch day.
By the end of the decade, Microsoft certainly required a reboot for mobile products. The introduction of the iPhone changed the dynamics for touch screen technology; the Android OS was rising fast, while Windows Mobile continued to live in a desktop environment.
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