Electronics, appliance and communications device maker LG Electronics Inc. and software giant Microsoft Corp. have signed a preliminary agreement for a “strategic collaboration†in mobile technology. The move is seen as an attempt by Microsoft to counter the competitive threat posed by Symbian, an open operating system designed for mobile devices, and gain more market share for its Windows Mobile operating system.
The Symbian OS is currently the world’s dominant leader with nearly 60% of the market, and the operating system will soon be going open source to try and retain that market leadership. Microsoft’s mobile operating system has been in third place for the last few years with about 12% of the market, but it has struggled to significantly increase its foothold. Windows Mobile also is facing increased competition from Apple’s iPhone handsets, as well as Google’s open source Android operating system.
