Sources: Mobile Firms Link with Microsoft
Reuters | at | by Mike
All major mobile operators in Europe and the United States will launch cell phones and other wireless devices in the coming year working on Microsoft software, sources close to the company said on Tuesday. Microsoft recently launched its first mobile device with British operator mmO2 called XDA, which combines a cell phone and a handheld organizer. Microsoft has also signed partnerships with some 20 other major mobile operators, including Italy's TIM, Germany's T-Mobile and Spain's Telefonica Movile, but until now details of future product launches have been absent.
"All major operators in the U.S. and Europe will bring Microsoft-based devices within the next 12 months," the source said. Microsoft last year launched mobile versions of its dominant Windows desktop computer operating system for smart phones and wirelessly connected handheld computers. This year it added reference designs that operators can take to contract electronics manufacturers to order Microsoft-based devices.