Importance of the Nokia+Microsoft Deal
The Nokia+Microsoft deal is the biggest news of the year so far in the mobile industry before the much awaited Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on February 14-27, 2011. What's the significance of this deal? How important is it to Nokia? And to Microsoft?
Nokia's Symbian OS usage is number 1 worldwide with more than 30% usage presence -- and it doesn't look like it's dwindling at all as you can see in the graph below. Nokia has a grasp of the mobile market at a scale much larger than the US, where, unfortunately, Nokia is weak with only 3% usage presence.
Source: StatCounter Global Stats - Mobile OS Market Share
Microsoft's Windows Phone usage presence is weak everywhere: US or worldwide. Now this is where we can see why Nokia is billing this as a Nokia+Microsoft deal and not as a Microsoft+Nokia deal. Nokia has a known and measurable strength in the mobile market. Microsoft doesn't. In most regard, it is easy to see that Microsoft needs Nokia more than the other way around.
Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 was released late last year with high hopes, yet disappointing sales so far.
Nokia, meanwhile, continues to make confusing directions in maintaining/supporting a couple of OSes, namely Symbian and MeeGo. Even though, Nokia's sales are not in a dip. However, the competition against Apple's iOS, Google's Android and RIM's Blackberry cannot be ignored. Nokia needs a simpler infrastructure to remain competitive in the smartphone business.
The Nokia+Microsoft deal primarily sets a new direction for Nokia. They would be a hardware manufacturing company for Microsoft's Windows Phone, aiming to drop Symbian and MeeGo. Microsoft and Nokia are expected to collaborate in merging many of their software products and services such as for search, maps and others.
Nokia is taking much risk in dropping Symbian for Windows Phone. Nokia has more than 200 million Symbian phones out worldwide and expects to sell 150 million more by the end of this year. So the timing of when Nokia would execute and implement the Microsoft deal is still in question -- how fast and how soon? It should be fast and soon, for sure. Nokia's website touts this partnership as Nokia's Strategy 2011!
Microsoft needs Nokia's current position as being number 1 worldwide. If Microsoft's Windows Phone is slow in the US, then perhaps it can catch on better outside the US. If Microsoft partners with Nokia, there is that chance of Windows Phone getting as much grab as Nokia's respected presence.
On the other hand, with the experience Microsoft has working with American carriers, Nokia might actually get a chance to penetrate the US market right. Nokia has been struggling to penetrate the US market where most mobile phones are sold via exclusive deals with carriers. Nokia is famous for selling open line units which is a popular practice in Europe and Asia. However, it is not the case in the US where people expect the carrier to offer units in subsidized prices.
Nokia is a Finnish multinational communications corporation engaged in manufacturing mobile devices, developing and maintaining software products and services including Symbian, MeeGo and Ovi to name a few.
Microsoft is an American multinational corporation that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions like for Windows, Windows Phone, Office and XBox 360 to name a few.
Nokia's Symbian OS usage is number 1 worldwide with more than 30% usage presence -- and it doesn't look like it's dwindling at all as you can see in the graph below. Nokia has a grasp of the mobile market at a scale much larger than the US, where, unfortunately, Nokia is weak with only 3% usage presence.
Microsoft's Windows Phone usage presence is weak everywhere: US or worldwide. Now this is where we can see why Nokia is billing this as a Nokia+Microsoft deal and not as a Microsoft+Nokia deal. Nokia has a known and measurable strength in the mobile market. Microsoft doesn't. In most regard, it is easy to see that Microsoft needs Nokia more than the other way around.
Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 was released late last year with high hopes, yet disappointing sales so far.
Nokia, meanwhile, continues to make confusing directions in maintaining/supporting a couple of OSes, namely Symbian and MeeGo. Even though, Nokia's sales are not in a dip. However, the competition against Apple's iOS, Google's Android and RIM's Blackberry cannot be ignored. Nokia needs a simpler infrastructure to remain competitive in the smartphone business.
The Nokia+Microsoft deal primarily sets a new direction for Nokia. They would be a hardware manufacturing company for Microsoft's Windows Phone, aiming to drop Symbian and MeeGo. Microsoft and Nokia are expected to collaborate in merging many of their software products and services such as for search, maps and others.
Nokia is taking much risk in dropping Symbian for Windows Phone. Nokia has more than 200 million Symbian phones out worldwide and expects to sell 150 million more by the end of this year. So the timing of when Nokia would execute and implement the Microsoft deal is still in question -- how fast and how soon? It should be fast and soon, for sure. Nokia's website touts this partnership as Nokia's Strategy 2011!
Microsoft needs Nokia's current position as being number 1 worldwide. If Microsoft's Windows Phone is slow in the US, then perhaps it can catch on better outside the US. If Microsoft partners with Nokia, there is that chance of Windows Phone getting as much grab as Nokia's respected presence.
On the other hand, with the experience Microsoft has working with American carriers, Nokia might actually get a chance to penetrate the US market right. Nokia has been struggling to penetrate the US market where most mobile phones are sold via exclusive deals with carriers. Nokia is famous for selling open line units which is a popular practice in Europe and Asia. However, it is not the case in the US where people expect the carrier to offer units in subsidized prices.
Nokia is a Finnish multinational communications corporation engaged in manufacturing mobile devices, developing and maintaining software products and services including Symbian, MeeGo and Ovi to name a few.
Microsoft is an American multinational corporation that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions like for Windows, Windows Phone, Office and XBox 360 to name a few.
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