Nokia and Microsoft form partnership

[Ben]

Nokia has announced plans to form a "broad strategic partnership" with Microsoft.

The deal would see Nokia use the Windows phone operating system for its smartphones, the company said.

Microsoft's Bing will power Nokia's search services, while Nokia Maps would be a core part of Microsoft's mapping services.

Earlier this week Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop sent a memo to staff warning that the company was in crisis.

The new strategy means Nokia's existing smartphone operating systems will be gradually sidelined.

Symbian, which runs on most of the company's current devices will become a "franchise platform", although the company expects to sell approximately 150 million more Symbian devices in future.

The announcement is widely seen as a response to the growing pressure from other smartphone platforms, including Google's Android and Apple's iPhone.

Nokia's share of the smartphone market fell from 38% to 28% in 2010, according to research firm IDC.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12427680

[Hands0n]

I'd have bet on this given that Nokia were not too complimentary about Android at its beginning. I clearly recall one of the Nokia chiefs rubbishing Android as a complete irrelevance. Another statement to add to the annuls of those that preceded him with such utterances. Decca (a record label) said The Beatles were a flash in the pan, IBM said it saw a market for no more than 100,000 PCs worldwide, ever. And so on.

So, WP7 on an N8 anyone? Yes, I think so. Having experienced WP7 on a Samsung Omnia recently (thank you Three) and a Nokia N8 (thankfully now sold on eBay) I can see that the blending of the two would be a sure success. Not that I expect Nokia to re-engineer the N8, rather I'd expect them to bring WP7 to an entirely new device. But the N8 would be a good starting point.

Finally, Microsoft would have some decent hardware with a global brand, and Nokia would have a decent OS and, more importantly a vibrant global ecosystem, upon which to base their hardware. And, allegedly, several hundred million USDs from Microsoft for the pleasure, which cannot be a bad thing for Nokia.

Will the public buy into WP7 now? I do think that with the Nokia brand reputation there is a natural market. The Symbian thoroughbreds will be foaming at the mouth at todays news, no doubt. There is going to be a period in which Symbian will still largely be available on Smartphones. I don't doubt that S40 will persist in their Featurephones for some time to come - WP7 is not a substitute. But could Nokia switch over to just a single device type? With all the talk of enabling the Third World for the Internet it does strike me that the life of the Featurephone is somewhat limited, going forward. That ultimately all phones will be Smartphones.

Time alone will tell. But I do believe that Nokia (and Microsoft) have just entered a rather interesting era of their own creation. I shall certainly watch with interest.

[hecatae]

Nokia is on fire, and now Microsoft is weeing on it to put it out http://www.eurodroid.com/2011/02/astonishing-battle-address-confirms-no-android-future-for-nokia/

how soon will we see a Nokia WP7 actual handset?

[Hands0n]

Two to three months is my guess.

If I had to place a bet I reckon that we'll see one announced within the next two weeks. Then we should see one turn up in the stores in about another six weeks. That takes us up to April/May. I really cannot see any good reason why the combined forces of Microsoft and Nokia could not launch on, say, the N9 and/or a variant of the N8 - their supposedly currently best selling handset.

How cool would it be to offer existing N8 owners an update to their handsets, if they so wish, to WP7. That may "cost" them [paper money] in the short term but would be an amazing and unique step to take.

[miffed]

I am not sure this it possible (Re-N8 ? ) I am sure I read somewhere that the "3 hard buttons" thing was going to be a non-negotiable part of WP7 ?

Loving how positive we all are about this !! - Let's take a wander back three years , say , 2007 ? and imagine this conversation.....

Hands0n / Ben - "All hail the mighty Nokia !! - Death to Windows Mobile !! "

Miffed - "Hey Hands0n , Ben .... Wouldn't it be great if Nokia made a phone put Microsoft Software on it ? "

Hands0n / Ben - "Shut up miffed you retard !!"

...... In fact , I am pretty sure we did have some conversations along those lines ! :D :D :D

[Hands0n]

Guilty as charged, sir Miffed :) I'm sure you've got that one fairly on the nail.

I think that the "3 hard buttons" is somewhat negotiable. That Samsung Omnia 7 that I had on loan from Three had a single physical button (as with the iPhone) and the other two buttons were soft. I may be mistaken, but I do also think that I read somewhere that the buttons could be soft for all three, but that they had to be in the same order (unlike Android that seems to vary from make to make).

I suppose the spoiler for the N8 would be the physical button being in the wrong place on the device. Shame really, because that is all the N8 needs, a bloody good OS rather than that tat they equipped it with.

2007 huh? That would have been the final year of my Nokia N95 ownership. I was quite enjoying the handset, especially after I had removed the Vodafone branding and crippling off of it. I had just started using Truphone (SIP) and JoikuSpot (WiFi hotspot tether). My, how far we've come in four years. My next handset was the iPhone 2G, and the rest is history.

No other handset since has looked or felt the same. The Android experience has been fun but I still do not find the combined hardware and OS leave me wanting more. Then the sabbatical in 2010 with a BlackBerry Bold 9700 for six weeks was excruciatingly painful. While I could do much with the BB that I could with the iPhone (or Android) it was always with some degree of difficulty or lesser capability. Everything felt so very "basic". Then my repeated recent few weeks with a Nokia N8 left me utterly convinced that, with Symbian^3, Nokia were completely barking.

Today's news has had a predictable effect in the markets, with Nokia's share price dropping some 14% on the day. Microsoft fared much better with only a 0.91% fall on the day.

It was to be expected, but that doesn’t make it any less newsworthy: Nokia is really taking a beating on the public markets right now.

Stock price was down about 14% last I looked (NYSE), but it has been hovering around a 13.5% drop in the past few hours.

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2011/02/11/nokia-share-price-takes-a-hell-of-a-nosedive-down-14/

So, man and dog wait to see what the new alliance has to offer. People, particularly the markets, seem to be judging Nokia more harshly than Microsoft. Possibly because they see that Nokia has more to lose in this deal than does MS.

[Ben]

miffed is absolutely correct; a few years ago this would've been unthinkable. Nokia's hardware was unbeatable and Symbian S60 was the market leader in actual features and performance, not just market share.

Then the iPhone happened and the rest is history.

Nokia have struggled for years now to come up with an answer to the iPhone 'problem' (which has since manifested itself in Android, surely a much bigger problem, even if iPhone does have 61% of the $300+ handset market) and finally they've admitted that they just can't do it. They need time to concentrate on 'what's next', and given their R&D spend this is definitely what they're doing, but in the meantime they need WP7 in order to compete with what's currently on the market and ensure that, in a few years time, they still have a base to build from with their 'new' ideas.

[miffed]

Having been falsely accused of being "Anti-Nokia" in the past , I am surprised by the negative way this is all being received by the Nokia community (From looking around the various forums)

I am pleased that Nokia will once again be relevant to me , and I really look forward to getting my hands on a "new era" Nokia , and ultimately a new Nokia Communicator !!

I think this move shows a divide between who is REALLY Pro Nokia , and who is simply Anti- anything better !

[Hands0n]

I think this move shows a divide between who is REALLY Pro Nokia , and who is simply Anti- anything better !

Yes, I agree. Unfortunately, technology has become [always has been?] heavily populated with over-zealous enthusiasts who hold an almost holy allegiance to the make or brand of their choice. And for these there can be no word heard that is not entirely complimentary about their chosen idol. Nokia has its fare share of suchlike.

I believe that, as an enthusiast, it is our role to also take the hard look also. To try and look at things objectively, rather than subjectively, in terms of what we believe to be the right thing to do or not. Even if that view is highly critical of Nokia. And fortunately for Nokia they, too, have taken a similar line of thinking. By taking such radical steps as removing old die-hard long-standing executive and senior management and bringing in radically different thinking Nokia have shown that they are quite prepared to take the hard decisions. This is a good sign, but the end result depends entirely upon their ability to execute the new plans.

It appears, then, that Nokia itself has judged Symbian as not being a relevant OS with which to compete against the likes of iOS and Android. Interesting that Nokia have a stated intent to apply WP7 across a broad range of Nokia device, to include so-called low-end devices. If executed in fact it would spell the complete end of Symbian on Nokia devices. What would be the point of persisting? Instead, Nokia intend to franchise Symbian. My only question would be "To who?".

So, can Nokia and Microsoft create a global alliance to take on the two big hitters on high-end smartphones? And can they apply their technology to low-end devices also, as we are seeing Android do (mostly from China and India). Even Apple are [rumoured to be] talking about bringing out a $200 iPhone so, if true, that would also be a reflection of the pressure that they'll be feeling to compete - no one is immune from the effects of the market!

I've got a few bob put aside for a new Nokia WP7 device. So I'm waiting with some anticipation.