Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s chief executive officer Steve Ballmer thinks their recent deal with Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) will be good for hardware partners. During a recent conference call on Tuesday with analysts, Ballmer detailed why he thinks his company’s Nokia acquisition will grow their opportunities with device makers.
He explained, “I’ve talked to a number of OEMs who are more enthusiastic today than yesterday about their investment in Windows Phone.”
Microsoft plans for Nokia
The company recently made plans to acquire Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) for about $7.2 billion in efforts to boost up their mobile offerings. Earlier this week, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced that 32,000 of their employees will come on board with the tech giant.
Stephen Elop (CEO for Nokia) will also come on board which means he could be the successor to Ballmer, who plans on leaving within a year.
Ballmer further expressed his excitement over the acquisition, saying, “This agreement is really a bold step into the future for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). We’re excited about the talent capabilities it will bring to Microsoft.”
Nokia losing mobile market
There has been talk of a potential deal between both tech companies in February. The Finnish brand Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) has lost their place in the ever-changing mobile market as customers want a fancier smartphone from the likes of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930). The company’s fall in Asia happened to be the most notable. In early 2010, the company has 64 percent of the market share in China. Within the first half of the year, that number plunged to one percent. Sadly, the once-thriving tech giant had failed to compete in a market now dominated by touch-screen smartphones. The New York Times explained, “In the lower price ranges, smartphone makers from China have been more responsive to consumer demands, offering phones with features resembling those of their more expensive rivals at a fraction of the cost. Risto Siilasmaa, Nokia’s interim chief executive, said on Tuesday that the sale of the handset business was the logical step in the company’s evolution but still pulled on his heartstrings.”
Only time will tell if Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V)’s merger will succeed.
