Microsoft, Nokia Deal Needs Speed to Succeed: Analysts

Industry analysts expect that the agreement between Microsoft and Nokia to port Windows
Phone 7 onto the latter’s smartphone devices will almost certainly change the
mobile landscape in coming years. But, if the two behemoths are to succeed in
their plan to combat Apple and Google, observers say they may need to execute their strategy
with startup-style rapidity.

Concept images of a Nokia-build Windows Phone 7 are already floating
around Websites such as Winrumors.
Sleek and thin, the devices’ designs seem tailor-made to counter high-end rivals
such as the iPhone. The potential release date for such devices, though,
remains an open question.

Nokia’s agreement with Microsoft could help the latter
penetrate the international markets where the former maintains a strong
presence. However, Nokia’s placement as dead-last among top mobile OEMs,
according to the latest data from research firm comScore, suggests the deal’s
effect on the U.S. market could be somewhat more negligible.

Meanwhile, it remains too soon to tell whether Windows Phone
7 is living up to Microsoft’s expectations for a new-and-improved smartphone
franchise. Company executives claim that Windows Phone 7 is selling at a rate
comparable to other first-generation smartphone platforms, but the exact number
of devices reaching consumers’ hands remains unclear. At the end of January,
Microsoft confirmed that some 2 million Windows Phone 7 units had been sold by
manufacturers to retailers.

For more, read the eWeek article Microsoft Nokia Deal Could Stumble on Timing.