Microsoft Phones: A Game and a Dream - Xiao Da Ma [Communication World]: Microsoft's phone plan has actually been in the works for a long time. Since the launch of its mobile operating system, the industry has been speculating when Microsoft would release its own physical phone. When Apple and Google began their phone layouts, especially with the emergence of Google’s Android, it was a significant shock to Microsoft. After all, Microsoft has always regarded Google as its biggest competitor in strategic planning. Initially, Microsoft had been cultivating the mobile operating system market for many years, alongside Symbian and Palm, known as the three major mobile operating systems at the time. However, with the advent of Apple's iPhone, the popularity of BlackBerry phones in the business market, and Google entering this field, Microsoft's already weak advantages started to be eroded.
According to foreign media reports, the world's largest mobile ad network, AdMob, released the latest data showing that in August of this year, among mobile devices accessing the internet, Apple's iPhone OS held a 40% market share, while Nokia's Symbian dropped to 34%. RIM OS fell from 10% to 8%, ranking third. Google's Android rose from 2% to 7%, placing fourth. Palm's new WebOS system accounted for 4%, ranking fifth. Windows Mobile fell from 7% to 4%, ranking sixth. Palm OS dropped from 3% to 1%, ranking seventh.
In fact, besides Apple, BlackBerry and Google have always maintained competitive advantages, especially the rapid growth momentum of Google's Android cannot be underestimated. Google possesses strong internet advantages and has been making great efforts to develop Android. With more and more alliance companies joining the Android camp, these are all potential threats to Symbian. For Microsoft, the competitive pressure will be even heavier.
Under such circumstances, how much effect can Microsoft's launch of its own physical phone plan achieve? Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer recently unveiled the Windows Phone series to compete against Apple's iPhone and Google's Android phones. It is reported that by the end of this year, about 30 different designs and priced Windows Phones will be launched in over 20 countries. Microsoft started with a big splash, hoping to win by volume. But it should be noted that the popularity of Apple's iPhone did not come from winning by volume; Microsoft's "human sea tactic" may not necessarily work.
Of course, since Microsoft is entering this market, it won't be too stingy. It is reported that these phones run on the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system and have functions such as calling, internet access, and video browsing. Seven mobile phone manufacturers including Sony, Samsung, Toshiba, and sixteen telecom operators including Orange, Vodafone, and T-Mobile will participate in the launch process of these Windows phones. Recalling the past popularity of PDAs in certain regions and people's familiarity with Microsoft's Windows system, Microsoft phones should not be difficult to use, and their capabilities are believed to not be too bad. The key still lies in whether they can lead a trend.
We see that the reason why the iPhone became popular is partly due to Apple's unique fashion route and partly because of the vast market opportunities brought by the APP Store. This is also the model advocated by many subsequent mobile giants, but there hasn't been anyone who surpasses Apple yet. Does Microsoft have a chance here? As everyone knows, Microsoft's strength in software is undeniable, but the support of third-party software developers is the key to driving the vigorous development of mobile app stores. That is, only when everyone contributes can the flame burn high to drive development. In this regard, Apple's iPhone exactly meets this market demand and has excellently grasped this opportunity, thus driving the entire product's hot sales.
Of course, Microsoft is not without any chance. As Ballmer said, "Allow users to get the same experience from these phones as they do with Windows PCs." This is the key to whether Microsoft's phones succeed or not. Due to people's familiarity with Windows, catering to this demand is the simplest way to advance. Microsoft hopes that the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system can realize this experience. But the pressure is considerable because iPhone, Symbian, Android, RIMOS, etc., all exert strong pressure on Microsoft.
In fact, we also see that Microsoft is learning from Apple's experience and launching its own mobile application store, though the number of apps is still very limited. It is reported that Microsoft's mobile application store is called Windows Marketplace Live, divided into several categories such as entertainment, office, and business center. Users can download and install applications using their Windows Live ID. However, the various applications available are still quite few. Apple claims that its App Store now has over 85,000 applications with download volumes reaching 2 billion times. This is the gap.
Microsoft's greatest reliance upon entering the mobile phone market is actually its mobile operating system, but since the advantages of Windows Mobile are not obvious and the original market share has been increasingly squeezed by later entrants. Market analysis firm Gartner stated that by 2012, Android will become the second-largest mobile platform. Gartner expects Android's global market share in 2012 to rank second, only behind Symbian. Gartner believes the main factors for Android's skyrocketing include Google's strong support, extensive cloud computing features, and future related applications launched by Google. Gartner predicts the smartphone operating system market shares in 2012 will be: Symbian ranks first with a 39% share; Android ranks second with a 14.5% share; iPhone ranks third with a 13.7% share; Windows Mobile ranks fourth with a 12.8% share; BlackBerry operating system ranks fifth with a 12.5% share.
Although different analysis institutions have different predictions, it can be seen that Microsoft's Windows Mobile is not the most favored. Therefore, Microsoft's promotion of its own phone path will be arduous and not smooth sailing. To surpass Apple and Google is almost like chasing a mirage. Related theme articles: Google China denies plans to withdraw all servers within the country; Hua Rong's heatstroke villa stock market game - Hua Rong - CICC Blog.