Shh. Can you hear that? Yup, that's the sound of a pin dropping when it comes to Microsoft shouting out and marketing Windows Phone. The company had a rather elusive presence at CES earlier this year, as well as the recent Mobile World Congress. If you ask anyone, "Who's powering Windows Phone marketing?" I bet the majority (if not everyone) will answer, "Nokia." So what's up with Microsoft?
The Register has gone into detail as to how hints were supplied at MWC that Microsoft doesn't feel the need to prove how great the company (or the mobile platform) is, which could be the case if Windows Phone were the number one platform - but this isn't quite reality just yet. There have been grumbles about Microsoft, its Windows Phone corporate vice president Terry Myerson and its apparent "play-dead" marketing strategy.
Sources were noted by The Register to state that Myerson is "old school Microsoft", attempting to preserve the purity of the platform. What's somewhat alarming is how it's reported that defects apparently require three OEMs to demand something is fixed before any action is taken by Microsoft. This is a stark contrast to what we witness from the likes of Joe Belfiore and Ben Rudolph - where enthusiasm for the product is all that's displayed.
It's interesting to note that no complaints were reported from Nokia, but rather from other parties. Nokia's Michael Halbherr informed The Register:
"Number one, we build great products. This is the second generation of devices, and you can now see our full portfolio. We’ve worked with Microsoft to stress differentiation. We do this with imaging and location, and also with our design. Number two, we work with operators. Operators want to rebalance the ecosystem."
Halbherr finishes off with should a problem arise, he can quickly contact Terry and vice versa. Microsoft is a massive company, there's no doubt about it, but if they're serious about Windows Phone (which appears to be the case) then it makes one wonder why they're not pushing it as much as (or more than) Nokia. We would have preferred to have seen a huge presence at MWC this year with representatives on the ground and getting word out.
It was only yesterday when we covered the Windows Phone team pushing out adverts in cinemas across the US. More of this, please.
But alas, Microsoft is Microsoft. One could also argue that this could also be the reason why OEMs have shied away from Windows Phone. We could go into a full-scale rant about Microsoft and how the company has handled Windows Phone in the past (as well as the present). You could take Windows Phone 7.8 as a perfect example. Where is it? Why has it been delayed? What's being done about the Live Tile issues? There's just a sheer lack of communication with consumers.
There's still hope that cries are to be heard from not only consumers, but developers too. Microsoft has a superb product (according to reviews, feedback and adoption rates), which needs care, love and attention. For the time being, it's receiving all three from everyone but Microsoft.
Source: The Register
