Cortana, Microsoft’s answer to Google Now and Siri is now available in France, Germany, Spain and Italy on compatible Windows Phone devices. The beta version of Cortana has been available in the U.S. for some time now, with alpha builds available in China and the U.K. last summer. An alpha build of Cortana will be available to members of the Windows Phone Developer Preview Program later today.
Microsoft is attempting to give Cortana something that Siri and Google Now don’t have: a personality. This makes every new market a challenge for Microsoft as Cortana needs to be optimized for the locale that it is operating in. Other than that, it’s basically Siri, serving up relevant news, notifications for events and the like and reminders triggered by location.
Head here to sign up for the Windows Phone Developer Program, and check out some of Cortana’s features in the pictures below.
