Ballmer Takes A Header At Nokia Deal Meeting, Coffee Table Ejected From Conference Room
The story tells a wild tale, where Microsoft weighed options of buying BlackBerry or HTC in order to grab yet another hardware partner. But, with Nokia able to skirt out of the Windows Phone exclusive (software) partnership in 2014, Microsoft also worried that Nokia would switch to Android in order to boost its sales and image. So, in a way, this was a move of protection. Once the two began talking, there were plenty of obstacles. Notably, Nokia didn't want to fully give up control of its mapping services, and sure enough, it managed to keep little more than just that in the finalized deal.
Microsoft's first formal presentation to buy Nokia "bombed," according to the story. During one discussion in May, Steve Ballmer even tripped on a table in a law office and bloodied up his face. Naturally, the table was removed for the rest of the meeting.
The full story is a great read, and it struck us as odd that Nokia put up so much resistance. It's clear that Nokia's smartphone business is going nowhere fast, and it seems as if the Microsoft deal is a rescue operation. Oddly, Nokia didn't view it as that at first, but as we all know now, came around eventually.