No specific info on future platform release has been provided

Mar 1, 2013 09:00 GMT  ·  By

Redmond-based software giant Microsoft is reportedly gearing up for the launch of new flavors of its mobile operating system, and a company’s official is now said to have already confirmed that.

According to a recent article on PC Mag, Greg Sullivan, senior marketing manager at Microsoft, said during the Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona that the Windows Phone 8 platform is upgradeable, though he did not offer further details on the matter.

However, based on the latest reports on this, we could expect for at least two new Windows Phone 8 upgrades to arrive on devices before the end of the year.

One of them was recently spotted on a leaked HTC smartphone codenamed Tiara as the “Windows Phone 8 GDR2” platform release, supposedly set to arrive in the second quarter of the year.

Furthermore, Microsoft is rumored to plan another major upgrade for Windows Phone 8 for the end of the year, or the beginning of 2014, one that would be part of its so-called “Blue” project.

“We’re going to have an upgrade path going forward. Windows Phone 8 can evolve. We have an architecture that enables portability and is fundamentally hardware independent,” Sullivan reportedly said at MWC 2013.

Clearly, he might have been referring at any of the two platform versions, or even at a possible Windows Phone 9 platform release, which could arrive next year, based on Microsoft’s previous release schedule.

One thing that appears to be certain, however, is the fact that Microsoft’s hardware partners are getting ready for the launch of new smartphones running under Windows Phone.

“Over the course of the next several months, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some exciting new devices,” Sullivan also said.

In addition to the aforementioned HTC Tiara, rumors on yet unannounced Nokia devices also emerged online, including some referring to high-end smartphones for US wireless carriers AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.