A new Orange phone, dubbed "Canary", will sing using Microsoft's
wireless software based on its operating system Smart Phone
2002.
The introduction of the new phone today (22 October) is a key step
in Microsoft's strategy for mobile computing. Orange is the first
major operator to deploy Microsoft's new Windows Smartphone 2000
software that was introduced last February.
Ben Wood, senior analyst, mobile, at Gartner, said: "This will be a
significant breakthrough for Microsoft, particularly as it will
signal the first commercial availability of a product using
Microsoft's Smartphone 2002 operating system."
However, he said Microsoft faces stiff competition from established
phone operating system manufacturers. "Microsoft remains the
underdog in this market effectively locked out by Symbian which has
over 70% of the world's mobile phone manufacturing (by shipment
volume)." Microsoft is keen to carve a slice of the mobile market,
which saw over 400 million units ship last year.
"It owns the desktop, has gained momentum on PDAs. The next step is
mobile phones," said Wood. This week will also see the launch of
Vodafone's Live! Multimedia messaging service. "It's a battle of
the two biggest brands," said Wood.