Today marks a special day in smartphone history. Nokia and Microsoft finally squashed the rumors and announced plans to form a partnership that will hopefully make a big impact in the smartphone arena.
As we mentioned last week, rumors were floating around that Nokia and Microsoft were in discussions about possibly forming a partnership.
Well, these rumors can now be laid to rest as Nokia and Microsoft plan on forming a “strategic partnership.” Under this new partnership, both companies will aim to create products and services that will create an impact in the smartphone arena. Here is what the official press release mentions:
Nokia and Microsoft intend to jointly create market-leading mobile products and services designed to offer consumers, operators and developers unrivalled choice and opportunity. As each company would focus on its core competencies, the partnership would create the opportunity for rapid time to market execution. Additionally, Nokia and Microsoft plan to work together to integrate key assets and create completely new service offerings, while extending established products and services to new markets.
Under this partnership, Nokia will adopt Windows Phone as its main Operating System for its smartphones. This will allow more phones to run the Windows Phone operating system while subsequently boosting its market share and making it a market leader. Nokia plans on sharing its hardware design and language support with Microsoft. This new partnership will allow Microsoft to sell a wide range of smartphones with a wide price range to satisfy all shoppers. This new partnership also calls for a join marketing plan to boost sales. With this partnership, Bing will be used as the default search service on Nokia’s devices. Nokia’s Maps feature will become a part of Microsoft’s Maps feature and will be integrated with Bing’s search engine. Nokia’s already existing content and applications will also be integrated with Microsoft’s Marketplace.
Stephen Elop, Nokia’s President, stated during a news conference in London that consumers “want compelling mobile products, which include not only the device, but the software, services, applications and customer support that make a great experience.” Microsoft’s CEO, Steve Ballmer, is reported to be “excited” about the partnership.
Lets hope this new partnership provides Microsoft the needed boost to compete with Google’s Android Operating system and Apple’s iOS lineup. Nokia, which has been struggling in the smartphone market, saw a 4% market share increase when the rumor first surfaced. Hopefully, this move will benefit both Nokia and Microsoft in the long run.
Further reading: Microsoft, Nokia, Windows Phone 7
