Steve, I am not claiming to know exactly what is going on at Motorola, I am giving you my opinion based on what Motorola has been doing. I would NOT base my opinions on what they are saying, however. Obviously, this not being a court of law, I can speculate to my heart's content :)

How many developer do you suppose Motorola has working on Windows Mobile? Its not like we have seen a bunch of Motorola custom apps or UI improvements that their team of 400 have been working on. Either they are a lazy bunch or 77 developers is a significant portion of them. Motorola can cruise through '09 without very much custom development at all and still seem to be supporting WM. WM is a complete OS without needing much work at all.

@Darren:

Motorola showed new WM devices at CES and a spokesperson for Motorola said they still have developers at other sites after the layoff in Florida. Jha also said (not so long ago) that Motorola was opening a facility in the Seattle area to work more closely with Motorola (I don't know if those plans have changed, of course). Unless you have more knowledge of Motorola project staffing than most people (for example, that the Florida facility was their main WM development group), I think your "token developer or two" comment is wild speculation.

Yes, Jha said that "more of our effort and focus in 2009 is going to Android", but "more" is not "all" (nor even a "vast majority").

Maybe Motorola is staffing up to enter the Android market in a big way, but will still be delivering some new WM devices, too. Maybe in 2010, they'll add more focus to Windows Mobile, but that doesn't mean they'll be dumping Android, either. That's just speculation on my part, of course, but none of it contradicts anything I've read from Motorola.

Like you, I can't imagine they'd hire Android developers while planning to lay them off next year. (Laying them off if Android doesn't take off is another matter.) Similarly, I can't imagine they'd lay off all of their WM developers knowing they'll need WM developers again next year. (Laying off some if they're not putting as much emphasis on WM in 2009 is another matter, but they'd likely keep a core of expertise for any new devices they'll be developing in 2009.)

Steve

The notices from Motorola are crafty in hiding exactly what is going on over there. First they say they are supporting WM, then its WM and Android, then they let go of 77 WM developers, then they say they are focusing on Android for '09. I thought this was painfully obvious, but perhaps not.

While Motorola may be hanging on to some WM developers it is VERY clear (since they are the ones that have actually said it) that they are focusing on Android for now. If by keeping a token WM developer or two around makes you feel they are supporting WM as well, then that is fine.

@Chris:

This Jha is the same guy who spilled the beans about WM 6.5, so maybe he's getting a little disinformation. :D

Seriously, he doesn't know what he's talking about. He said, "As you know, Windows 6 series is available in 2009...." Um, no, Windows Mobile 6 "series" has been available since, what, 2007? I got my Motorola Q9m running Windows Mobile 6 in February 2008. Maybe he means WM 6.5, but that's not the same thing.

Of course, by now, I think we were all expecting the first WM 7 devices to come out in 2010. Jha said WM 7 would "become available" in 2010, but maybe he's confused or is referring to device availability, not the OS itself.

However, with WM 6.5 still not available, I'd be surprised if WM 7 is released to developers much before 2010.

@Darren:

I don't believe they let go of their WM developers. The reports that I read said that they let go of their WM developers at one site. Motorola people have said they have other WM developers at other sites. Have you read anything that said they let go of them all?

Steve

Maybe he just meant that they won't focus back onto it till 2010 after it has had a chance to go through a revision or two.

Either way, this seems like a very strange move and as a Motorola developer I would be a bit unsure of my future. They just let go of their WinMo developers. Are they going to can the Android developers in a year when they shift back? Plus, it seems like a BIG waste of resources having to start fresh with Android only to start fresh with WinMo all over again.