All You Need To Know About Microsoft’s Decision To Shelf Cortana

In this technological world, it is quite convenient if something can be done virtually and that too, with precision. But what if one of the most common technology tools we are using, cease to exist? What if we had to either switch to alternate option or no option at all?

Well, the same kind of reaction I had when I heard the news of Microsoft pulling off support from its one of the most amazing apps, Cortana from Android as well as iOS by 31st January 2020. Initially, Cortana was designed to connect Windows 10 PC and mobile phones. However, in late 2015, the company released the app on iOS and Android as well.

Now being in the cutthroat competitive market, where every day you see apps making consumer experience better, this app couldn’t make its mark. Earlier this year, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed that the company no longer sees Cortana as a competitor to Alexa and Google Assistant.

A Microsoft spokesperson stated “Cortana is an integral part of our broader vision to bring the power of conversational computing and productivity to all our platforms and devices,” “To make Cortana as helpful as possible, we’re integrating Cortana deeper into your Microsoft 365 productivity apps, and part of this evolution involves ending support for Cortana mobile app on Android and iOS.”

Which Market Will Be Affected?

There are a lot of markets which will get influenced by this decision from Microsoft. The company has decided to discontinue its Cortana mobile app (for Android as well as iOS) in several countries i.e. Canada, Australia, Great Britain, India, China, Germany, Mexico, and Spain. This decision will come into effect from 31st January 2020. Although, the company will continue the use of this App in the US market that is for an undetermined time period. The company isn’t planning to completely kill Cortana. Well, they are going to integrate it with MS Office 365 and Windows 10 will keep it as its Voice Assistant.

Why This Decision?

Microsoft has been observing this app and its use in different markets for a while now. The results stated that there are a lot of competitive apps in the market which provides the same service for Android as well as iOS. As compared to them, Cortana doesn’t seem to place its mark, and that might be one of the key factor for the company to pull off the support for the App from Android and iOS.

What Will Change for Current Users?

There are cases where the current and frequent users of the app go haywire if the app gets shelved for any reason. With reference to Cortana, if you use this app for syncing things like reminders and all, you can do so by using Microsoft To Do which is available free on Google Play. You can also invoke Cortana using Microsoft Launcher, but the app has been pulled out from that platform as well. Siri and Google Assistant are still the best alternatives to provide you with same experience as Cortana. So, no worries folks. You still got it.

Besides, users in the United States of America needn’t worry as the app will operate in the market though it’s for an undetermined time period.

Since Microsoft hasn’t seen that much success on the forefront when we talk about the company’s market in Mobile front. They continuously attempt and find their way to release their apps on various platforms which had been quite profitable for them. It looks like Cortana couldn’t be profitable (the way they expected it to be) for Microsoft, and this may be another reason for pulling it off from a few markets.

What do you think about Cortana being pulled out from a few yet important regions? Will it affect Microsoft apps users’ numbers?

Do share your valuable thoughts on this decision from Microsoft in the comments below.