Microsoft Plans New Shake-Up

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is expected to shake up the management of its division focused on videogames, mobile phones and other devices, in the wake of increasingly bruising competition from Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Google Inc. (GOOG) in the market for consumer devices, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Redmond, Wash., software company could announce major organizational changes at its Entertainment & Devices Division as early as this week, those people said. The division includes Microsoft’s Xbox videogame business and Windows Phone, an operating system for mobile phones. The unit accounted for $1.67 billion in sales during the first three months of the year, or about 11 percent of Microsoft’s $14.5 billion in revenue during the period.

One executive in the division, J Allard, the chief experience officer and chief technology officer of the group, is expected to leave that role following Microsoft’s recent decision to shut down a tablet PC development project known internally as Courier, that Mr. Allard was overseeing, people familiar with the matter said.

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