Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, speaking at a Windows Phone 8 launch event in Israel, has said that the launch of the company’s new mobile operating system may create a third major OS on the global market alongside Android and iOS.
Reuters reports that Ballmer said at the event “With the work we have done with Nokia, HTC, Samsung and others … there is now an opportunity to create really a strong third participant in the smartphone market.”
“We’re still relatively small … I expect the volumes on Windows Phone to really ramp quickly.”
A third player in the mobile operating system market would be a welcome addition and it does seem that Microsoft’s influence in that sphere is indeed growing, albeit slowly at the moment. Whether Windows Phone 8 has the legs to keep increasing its share depends largely on the partners Ballmer mentions. Nokia, Samsung and HTC will be instrumental in deciding whether WP 8 becomes a major force or whether it will remain a niche section of the market.
Source: Reuters