Microsoft retreats in smartphone battle, 1,850 jobs could go

Microsoft Corp announced more big cuts to its smartphone business on Wednesday, just two years after it bought handset maker Nokia in an ill-fated attempt to take on market leaders Apple and Samsung. The U.S. company said it would shed up to 1,850 jobs, most of them in Finland, and write down $950 million from the business. A Finnish union representative told Reuters the cuts would essentially put an end to Microsoft's development of new phones.