Both Samsung and HTC Corp. have committed to increasing marketing budgets for the phones, said Andy Lees, president of Microsofts mobile unit, in an interview. While the manufacturers will determine how the money is spent, some of it will probably go toward spurring retail staff to tout Windows Phone models, he said. New handsets with the new Windows Phone 7.5 will go on sale in the coming weeks, Lees said.
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Microsoft needs to do a better job of marketing the new software, which is much improved, said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at Gartner Inc.
From a technical perspective, it really does put them on par with the other competitors, but a lot of times Microsoft gets it right with the technology and then fumbles the marketing message, he said. Mobile-phone retailers havent cooperated in the past, Gartenberg said. If you went to store they showed you anything other than a Windows Phone. If you asked for a Windows Phone, they tried to talk you out of it.
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In addition to more aggressive marketing, Microsofts partnership with Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) will help sales, Lees said. Nokia announced earlier this year that it would base its handsets on Windows Phone software, a bid to reinvigorate its smartphone strategy. Nokia directly or indirectly controls more than 6,000 stores, Lees said.
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Manufacturers plan to produce a Windows phone that uses the high-speed wireless technology known as long-term evolution, or LTE, in the not-too-distant future, Lees said. That will make mobile carriers more eager to promote the Windows Phone.
Cheaper models also will be produced, giving a boost to the operating system, Lees said. While handset makers and the carriers determine prices and subsidies, consumers should see Windows Phone devices for less than $100 in the U.S., he said.
