Move over, Google. Microsoft is planning to launch a new line of mobile phones next week, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
The software giant will reportedly roll out mobile devices with social-networking capabilities that target young consumers. The Journal cited “people familiar with the matter” who said the devices are part of Microsoft’s strategy to invigorate its struggling mobile-phone strategy.
The Microsoft devices, part of a development project code-named Pink, will come to market first in the U.S., according to the Journal. Microsoft has reportedly partnered with Verizon Wireless and Vodafone. Pure and Turtle are said to be names for two of the phones.
Microsoft’s Hardware DNA
“With Windows 7, Microsoft has come a long way. The partnership strategies will help,” said Phil Marshall, a wireless analyst at the Yankee Group. “The question is whether Microsoft has the DNA to execute on the strategy.”
As Marshall sees it, Microsoft has displayed a tendency to remain closely tied and arrogant about traditional Windows environments. He said Microsoft hasn’t evolved sufficiently as a company to play in the mobile hardware market, particularly in integrating with social networks.
“Microsoft is doing this as a defensive, rather than offensive, move, which I believe will make it harder for the company to execute on,” Marshall said. “The smartphone market is really crowded right now. But if you are going to be in the future of the Internet, you need to be on the mobile Internet. So it’s no surprise that Microsoft is pushing in this direction.”
Microsoft vs Apple
Microsoft is attempting to do what Apple and Google have already done: Launch into a market where it has little experience. Apple’s iPhone has been a sterling success. But while Google’s Android operating system is picking up momentum in the smartphone market, the Google Nexus One has not seen the…