Microsoft and Nokia Finally Sign Definitive Agreement

An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft and Nokia yesterday announced the signing of a definitive agreement regarding their global mobile ecosystem partnership. We already know that Microsoft and Nokia will work together to reach out to developers, but the two have agreed to make Windows Phone developer registration free for all Nokia developers. There are also plans to open a new Nokia-branded global application store that leverages the Windows Phone Marketplace infrastructure so that developers can publish and distribute applications through a single developer portal to consumers that use Windows Phone, Symbian, and Series 40 devices. Lastly, Nokia will contribute its expertise in operator billing to ensure participants in the Windows Phone ecosystem can take advantage of Nokia's billing agreements with 112 operators in 36 markets."

Comments

Looking forward to the shareholder lawsuit...

[ArsenneLupin]

w00t!

Who are they reaching out to?

[spaceon]

Who are they going to be reaching out to? The Windows developers that were already ignoring WP7, or the developers that got shafted by Nokia when they changed course?

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[recoiledsnake]

>Windows developers that were already ignoring WP7

Really? How did you come to know of that? By reading Slashdot?

The developer tools were downloaded over 1.5 million times and there are over 13,000 apps in the WP7 marketplace (faster growth rate than Android and iPhone at that stage).

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[FlipperPA]

Hardly a Microsoft fan, but two seconds of Googling would have gotten you here (or any number of other sources):

http://www.windowsphoneapplist.com/stats/

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[Missing.Matter]

http://windowsteamblog.com/windows_phone/b/wpdev/archive/2011/03/30/a-year-later-the-windows-phone-7-numbers-that-matter.aspx

I don't know how this compares to iPhone and Android, but 1.5 million SDK downloads, 36k developers, and 13k apps is impressive for a 6 month old platform that, by Slashdot's account, has 4 users.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[Anonymous Coward]

They are trying to reach out to people like me.
Iâ(TM)m working for a big mobile game developer company (hence posting as AC), and I told our CEO, that I'd rather quit and take my whole team with me, than to develop for WP7.
And from talking with others in the industry, including Nokia's own people, I'm by far not the only one.

Developing for Nokia right now, is like buying tickets for the Titanic, shortly after hearing it hit the iceberg.
And I'm saying that as a former level 65 Nokia fanboy. ;)

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[UnknowingFool]

It's not that much faster than iOS. WP7 has almost 15K apps right now. The marketplace was launched Oct 21, 2010. That's about 81/day. iTunes App store launched July 11, 2008 and had 15K by January 16, 2009. That is 78/day. There is lot of rounding error in there as the numbers are not exact. Android is a little harder to figure out as it's not all in one place.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[UnknowingFool]

I don't know about SDK downloads but according to wikipedia, Apple had about the same number of apps in the same time period. Apple however does have app download information (500,000,000) whereas I can't find that for WP7.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[CharlyFoxtrot]

Microsoft has a huge developer base, they are Nokia desperately needs and what MS is bringing to the table in this deal. MS can evidently count on these developers to give their platform a shot, historically not a bad gamble. The foundation has been laid, now comes the critical part: converting these available apps into actual sales and a viable business financially. So far the only platform where users consistently spend a lot of money is iOS with Android a distant second.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[Eponymous Coward]

I don't know if I agree with that. The tile metaphor is fairly unique and has been duplicated on Android. I think any innovation they come up with will be quickly cloned.

I would put their problems in three categories.

1. Their marketing sucks. They spent a fortune on a campaign to establish that WP7 is good for people who don't like using a smart phone.
2. They have the appeal and sexiness of Cisco or Oracle. They're that middle aged slightly pudgy guy driving a sports car. There doesn't seem to be anybody at Microsoft with any sense of design. At least nobody of any apparent authority.
3. Their best developers have moved on to Google, Apple, and Facebook and Microsoft isn't very attractive to the best of the new generation of developers and designers. They might attract some people with fat pay checks, but they aren't ever going to get the truly passionate people.

Add to that their craptastic management and stifling bureaucracy and it's no wonder their stock has been dead in the water for a decade.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[zach_the_lizard]

13k apps is nice, but phone and app sales aren't all that great now. I was interested in XNA, so I paid the $99. I released a small app first, and it's seen ~300 downloads in a month or two. With ads, I make ~$2-1 per day. I'm hoping my game (when released) will make more, but MS has decided to rank all indie games after Xbox Live games from what I understand.

I could be #1 in sales of all apps everywhere but unless I have the Xbox Live mark, I'm automatically ranked lower, making it hard to find my game. Plus, there's currently no indie game tab. This kind of thing makes me not want to work with the platform, at least for games.

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[Goffee71]

I'm sure there are many developers starting out who would rather be a decent-sized fish in a smaller pond (with potential to grow) rather than drown in the morass of iOS apps. As for Nokia, the company is still huge (http://www.cmswire.com/cms/enterprise-20/applenokia-report-earnings-a-game-of-two-halves-010961.php) and I hope this works for them but I wonder if the market has moved on?

Re:Who are they reaching out to?

[Eponymous Coward]

That works out to about $2,000 per phone sold during that time.

They would have been better off to pay people $1,000 to take the phone and let word of mouth do it's job.

The Deck Chairs Are Well Placed

[Nova Express]

I believe the new agreement optimally places the desk chairs for Nokia employees to have truly breathtaking views of the approaching iceberg.

Or perhaps I should say iCeberg.

Shame

[Anonymous Cowar]

I switched from the n900 to the motorola atrix and I'm going to say it: for a linux geek who doesn't care about an app market, the n900 (and its successor) beat the pants off of android devices. I would routinely go 3-4 days without charging vs my 36 hour android battery life, the slide out keyboard was pretty good and beats the on-screen keyboards any day, and multitasking without having applications hide in the background is still sorely missed.

Now the n900 wasn't perfect, but if it had a capacitive screen, 3g on AT&T, and a 1ghz+ chip, it would have been.

Re:Shame

[bdkraem]

Now the n900 wasn't perfect, but if it had a capacitive screen, 3g on AT&T, and a 1ghz+ chip, it would have been.

You've obviously never used 3G on AT&T.

Microsoft releases actual cow turd as phone

[David Gerard]

Desperate to stay competitive against iPhone and Android mobile devices, Microsoft has released a two-pound lump of actual cow faeces that they claim constitutes a phone.

Windows Phone 7, in development for several years, strips the mobile telephone down to its fundamental essence: futility, annoyance, malfunction, inconvenience and a socially unacceptable odour. Confounding analyst expectations, the turd is in fact shined.

US mobile carriers hailed the turd as the perfect physical complement to their world-famous customer service. "This powerful product will promote our growth!" said John Harrobin of Verizon Wireless. "We're marketing them as edible."

"We think we can really work the brand equity," said Steve Ballmer, modelling the optional shoulder-length rubber gloves. "Everyone works with our stuff all day every day. They know who Microsoft is and what we do."

"How about making our customers actually swallow our bullshit physically?" said John Harrobin. "Windows Phone 7 was my idea."

Photo: Steve Ballmer ecstatic at Windows Phone 7 sales.

Things change

[SmallFurryCreature]

The N95 was once the most popular phone. Then the iPhone happened. Then the iPhone was the most popular phone and Android happened, Then RIM introduces Ping and (at least in Holland) they sell a bundle.

People have zero brand loyalty or memory in the phone market. They buy whatever they want to, based either on some personal preference or because their cronies got one. It is funny with the RIM's. Both a business elite phone AND a phone for youngsters (Ping is cheaper then SMS apparently or easier, god knows, or cares)

Don't count Nokia out yet. MS might have had a long loosing streak but... well, they are used to it.

What is often missing is that Nokia got 1.00.000.000 in the deal. That funds a LOT of development. MS bought the 360 (which I note an awful lot of so called nerds here have got) with its Windows/Office income. It can buy a phone. If not this round, then the next and the next and the next.

There are worse places to be then at the end of a MS cash dump.

Re:Things change

[UnknowingFool]

There are worse places to be then at the end of a MS cash dump.

Well considering how poorly most of MS partners do, if I were Nokia, I would go over that agreement very carefully. The worst place that Nokia can be is that MS ends up with their IP like when it happened to Sendo.

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Well done Nokia

[DrXym]

Your decision to partner with Microsoft is as sage and wise as allowing your balls to be shaved by a mental patient.

Nokia must get Qt onto WP and S40

[DonZorro]

Nokia has been kicking developers around for the past couple years.

and then developers were promised that Qt would allow great portability. Qt showed great potential.
Now, when developers started to invest considerable time with Qt, Nokia sends mixed signals or releases statements that are plausibly deniable about their commitment to Qt and Symbian's future.
Elop issued the burning platform memo to condemn Symbian, instead of allowing staff to work through the Symbian UX issues.
Recent releases and updates have shown considerable improvement with Symbian UX issues, just when the CEO gives a strategy to turn the big Nokia ship into the Microsoft vortex or whirlpool.

Developers need Qt as the life raft or life jacket to help them stay afloat in these turbulent waters.
Nokia should get Qt to be supported on WP and S40 phones.

Without any such concrete action from Nokia, most developers will move to Android or another platform.

Re:s40?

[Desler]

That said, I'm still scratching my head why Nokia didn't go with Android.

Because they don't want to fight for the barebones margins of being another Android handset maker?

Re:Nokia profits and sales have dropped sharply

[horza]

You mean people no longer want to buy Nokia phones since they cut off life-support to the operating system, and after shafting all the developers you can be sure no new software will be coming out? Not very surprising.

Phillip.