14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft and Nokia did not seem to have finished their business together after the former acquired the Finnish company’s mobile and services division.
Even though per official statements we know Microsoft can use the Nokia brand on its Windows Phones for about one year and a half or so, it may be longer than that.
Although everyone is expecting Microsoft to drop the Nokia brand for good in the next couple of months, things appear to go in a completely different direction when it comes to handsets.
While Microsoft has already started to feverishly remove the Nokia name from all the Windows Phone applications that are available in the Store, the future of its smartphones is still unclear.
Even some of the services previously provided by Nokia, like MixRadio, dropped the Nokia name, which is a clear indication that Microsoft is now trying to differentiate itself from the Finnish company.
Part of the reasons are of course legal-related, as the agreement between the two companies probably stipulates a certain timeframe for Microsoft to remove the Nokia brand from all assets that it now owns via the Finnish company’s mobile and services division.
We’ve seen that Microsoft has already started the part of the plan where it’s removing the Nokia brand from all software and services, so we thought that the Redmond-based company is likely to come up with a new name for its future Windows Phones as well.
However, this might not happen too soon if we are to believe the latest rumors that claim Microsoft is looking to license the Nokia brand for its smartphones.
According to a reliable source, the next smartphones with Windows Phone launched by Microsoft could be branded Nokia as well. But the Redmond is determined to drop the Lumia name and use “Nokia by Microsoft” instead.
The Lumia brand is said to replace Microsoft’s Surface family of tablets, even though the company invested a lot of money to make Surface a well-known brand.
Obviously, Lumia seems to be superior to Surface when it comes to popularity, which is why Microsoft prefers to drop the Surface brand in favor of a new one that will appeal to more customers.
Microsoft has a long track of badly named brands, which is why I assume it now wants to make sure it doesn’t fail on rebranding its smartphones lineup.
Using a well-established name such as Nokia for its handsets is a smart move by Microsoft, but I’m still not sure how this will be applied given the rumors claiming each Windows Phone handset will be tagged with the “Nokia by Microsoft” brand.
Even though these are just rumors, coming from a pretty reliable source, it might end up being accurate. The problem is we still don’t know Nokia’s position on the matter, as the Finnish company showed interest in Android smartphone market lately by launching the amazing Z Launcher app.
I doubt what’s left of Nokia wants to start producing smartphones again, this time powered by Google’s Android OS, but anything is possible in this business.
Perhaps the two companies will never reach an agreement regarding the Nokia brand, but I wouldn’t dislike a “Nokia by Microsoft” Windows Phone at all. What do you think about Microsoft’s rebranding plans for Windows Phone?