Good question. My opinion: Microsoft doesn't care all that much about angering its partners. I believe Microsoft still has an 800-pound gorilla mentality and feels it can pretty much dictate terms to partners. That's why I always thought Nokia made a mistake partnering with Redmond on a smartphone. Nokia needs that partnership to work far more than Microsoft does. In fact, Nokia's existence pretty much depends on it.
I don't see Microsoft making much a dent at all in the smartphone market, whether it or a partner is manufacturing the devices. It seems to me that Microsoft still believes that marketing and bluster from Steve Ballmer can make up for the fact that its mobile strategy hasn't kept up with Apple and Android. Asserting that your products are superior doesn't work when consumers can decide for themselves if they are.
Answer
Good question. My opinion: Microsoft doesn't care all that much about angering its partners. I believe Microsoft still has an 800-pound gorilla mentality and feels it can pretty much dictate terms to partners. That's why I always thought Nokia made a mistake partnering with Redmond on a smartphone. Nokia needs that partnership to work far more than Microsoft does. In fact, Nokia's existence pretty much depends on it.
I don't see Microsoft making much a dent at all in the smartphone market, whether it or a partner is manufacturing the devices. It seems to me that Microsoft still believes that marketing and bluster from Steve Ballmer can make up for the fact that its mobile strategy hasn't kept up with Apple and Android. Asserting that your products are superior doesn't work when consumers can decide for themselves if they are.