When Nokia announced a couple of years ago for forgo Symbian in favor of Microsoft’s Windows Phone handset, many were perplexed especially since Windows Phone was hardly the most profitable platform at the moment, and we guess the best alternative would be Google’s open-sourced mobile platform, Android. Speaking with The Hindu newspaper, Nokia’s Stephen Elop revealed rather candidly that Nokia’s investment in the Windows Phone platform was overinvested on purpose in a bid to help the operating system build some momentum.“What we like about Windows Phone, and this is something you have seen over the last few quarters, is the overall trend. So you are right, it is not profitable, but that was a very conscious decision. When you are starting something new, you have to over-invest, you have to put the money into it. But if you go back, lets say five quarters ago to now … you can see a clear trajectory of increased sales building up. This is part of the reason that Microsoft is excited to do what they are doing, because this is at a time when the trajectory is heading in exactly the correct direction. We made a conscious decision as to how much would we invest, that we would over-invest, with the intent of building that momentum. And that’s exactly what we are seeing, so we were pleased to do that.”
At this point in time it does look like the Windows Phone platform is slowly gaining more market share, although it is still far behind the likes of Android and iOS. Will Nokia’s overinvestment pay of? Perhaps not necessarily for the company, but since Microsoft had recently announced their intention to acquire the Finnish company, perhaps Nokia’s efforts will pay of for their new owner down the line.
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