Nokia and Microsoft Make Smartphone Alliance

[wraggster]

The smart money was right. Nokia has jumped into bed with Microsoft (http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2011/02/11/nokia-and-microsoft/) and will produce phones running Windows Phone 7 (http://www.nokia.com/press/press-releases/showpressrelease?newsid=1488007). The cynics would say that, here, we have two lumbering dinosaurs of the technology world clinging to each other hoping that the other gives them a future (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-11/nokia-joins-forces-with-microsoft-to-challenge-dominance-of-apple-google.html). Optimists would point to two companies that need each other (http://conversations.nokia.com/2011/02/11/open-letter-from-ceo-stephen-elop-nokia-and-ceo-steve-ballmer-microsoft/?mobile), both bringing vital components to the alliance. The big winner is Microsoft. Windows Phone 7, while reasonably well received by commentators, has not set the world on fire. An alliance with Nokia gives it access to the world's largest phone maker and its huge mindshare — in many developing nations a mobile phone is known as a Nokia. The biggest loser is MeeGo, the ugly, unloved step-child of operating systems."Nokia wrote to developers, "Qt will continue to be the development framework for Symbian and Nokia will use Symbian for further devices (http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/nokia-developer-news/2011/02/11/letter-to-developers?sf1066337=1); continuing to develop strategic applications in Qt for Symbian platform and encouraging application developers to do the same.

http://mobile.slashdot.org/story/11/02/11/1243232/Nokia-and-Microsoft-Make-Smartphone-Alliance