On Microsoft & Nokia

In the beginning of last month I did a short post on why Nokia should adopt Windows Phone 7 and or Android. An excerpt:

Windows Phone 7 has a fixed spec sheet and given Nokia’s handset designing experience they can do a decent job of designing at most two phones – with and without physical keyboards. Nokia doesn’t necessarily need to compete with HTC, Samsung, Google, Microsoft at the same time. They can forge alliances with Google and Microsoft for the short term while competing with other handset manufacturers and place themselves as a long term competitor with all the four.

Now that the partnership is official here are a few quick thoughts:

Why not Android?

• Samsung, HTC & Motorola have a powerful Android portfolio amongst them, competing with them would be a tough task. Creating an experience that separates Nokia’s handsets, which an Android device from Nokia should bring to the table, would take time.
• Microsoft’s commitment to the partnership will be more than Google’s since Android already has made its mark, Microsoft needs WP7 to grow.

Microsoft, huh?

• A partnership with Microsoft gives Nokia Microsoft’s pockets & services like Xbox LIVE, adCenter, Zune Marketplace (I’ve hardly heard anything good about Ovi.)
• Microsoft needs an exclusive vendor like Nokia since current partners have invested in Android as well.

Why bother at all? Why not continue with MeeGo and Symbian?

• Nokia can now worry less about the whole mobile ecosystem, continue doing good hardware and their engineers get breathing room to work on MeeGo and Symbian.
• It’s an interim strategy to remain relevant.
• Competing with Palm, Android & iOS with Symbian & MeeGo would’ve buried Nokia.

The partnership is a win-win for both companies despite what your anti-Microsoft or MeeGo fanboy friend might say. These are business decision, emotional choices don’t exactly help a company.