Economy

Nokia phone project article shows Microsoft only has one strategy:

"Over the past few years, the company's legal team has cornered the majority of Android manufacturers worldwide into a stark deal: agree to pay a set fee for every Android device produced, or face a costly patent-infringement lawsuit. As a result of that arm-twisting, Microsoft already makes quite a bit of money off Android (more, perhaps, than it earns selling Windows Phone), which could acclimate it to the idea of taking the leap and actually selling Android devices."

Microsoft has never made a good product. It's the biggest obstacle to computer innovation in the world. Like its progenitor IBM, Microsoft understood the power of patents better than its competitors. It's owes its position to using patents as weapons against truly innovative companies.