Updated below with Microsoft comment.
T-Mobile and Microsoft are just down the road from each other in the Seattle region, but their relationship is starting to seem less than neighborly.
Microsoft’s new flagship Windows Phone, the Lumia 950, is set to launch on just one carrier, AT&T, when it makes its U.S. debut in November. Microsoft tells CNET that the deal isn’t exclusive and the company is having talks with other carriers who may sign up to sell both the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL.
But T-Mobile CEO John Legere is telling a different story on Twitter tonight.
To be clear: We did not turn down the new Windows devices. MSFT gave to AT&T. If @microsoft wakes up, we'll talk about @TMobile carrying
— John Legere (@JohnLegere) October 8, 2015
@Jessquire09 i don't want exclusive rights to anything.., nor do customers
Just dinosaur carriers and OEMs who didn't learn from #firephone— John Legere (@JohnLegere) October 8, 2015
That last tweet was a reference to Amazon’s failed launch of the Fire Phone, which was exclusive on AT&T.
That’s not the only sign of a rift between the companies. T-Mobile’s online store is no longer carrying any Windows-powered smartphones, including older models that are already out. When you click the operating system dropdown menu to search T-Mobile’s inventory, Microsoft’s mobile OS isn’t even an option.
When GeekWire asked T-Mobile what was going on, a spokesperson said, “Microsoft has scaled back retail availability of their Windows phone devices so T-Mobile is not selling them directly.”
The T-Mobile spokesperson also pointed out that customers who buy phones elsewhere can bring an unlocked Lumia 950 to T-Mobile anytime.
Update: Microsoft says in a statement:
“We’re refocusing our channel strategy, narrowing it in the short-term and planning for broader operator availability long-term. While there was interest across the board from U.S. operators, currently we’ve made the decision to have AT&T carry the Lumia 950, and then sell both the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL unlocked through our own channel in Microsoft stores. In Europe, Deutsche Telekom will carry the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL, and we’ll have more to share about other carriers shortly.”
