Nokia and Microsoft launch smartphone fightback

Nokia has teamed up with Microsoft in an attempt to take on Google’s Android platform and the Apple iPhone in the fast moving smartphone market.

The Finnish mobile phone company will use Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 (WP7) as the software platform for its smartphones as part of a "broad strategic partnership to build a new global ecosystem".

In return Nokia will help Microsoft develop it and ensure a wide range of phones using it are available globally.

Nokia's existing smartphone operating systems will be gradually sidelined with Symbian becoming a "franchise platform".

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive, said at the launch: "The partnership announced today provides incredible scale, vast expertise in hardware and software innovation and a proven ability to execute."

Stephen Elop, Nokia's new chief executive, added that “the game has changed from a battle of devices to a war of ecosystems…An ecosystem with Microsoft and Nokia has unrivalled scale around the globe."

The new alliance comes after Nokia's competitive failings were detailed in Elop's "burning platform" memo that was sent out to staff.

The internal memo was then published by technology website Engadget, in which he said: "We have more than one explosion - we have multiple points of scorching heat that are fuelling a blazing fire around us.

"There is intense heat coming from our competitors, more rapidly than we ever expected. While competitors poured flames on our market share, what happened at Nokia? We fell behind, we missed big trends, and we lost time."