Microsoft's Mobile Gamble: $7.2 Billion Acquisition of Nokia's Device Unit

In September 2013, the American tech giant Microsoft announced it would acquire the devices and services division of the Finnish company Nokia for $7.2 billion. The deal, struck between Helsinki and Seattle, aimed to give Microsoft complete control over its Windows Phone strategy, deeply integrating software and services with hardware devices. Microsoft hoped to replicate Apple's success with the iOS ecosystem and reverse its continued lag in the global mobile device market.

Although the acquisition ultimately failed to achieve its intended results, leading to billions in write-downs years later, it remains one of the largest vertical integration attempts in tech history, demonstrating the massive and costly efforts by an old guard giant to navigate the mobile internet transition.