Handset makers are not actually too excited to make Windows Phone handsets, as I’m sure you can tell. Nokia is commanding a lion’s share of the Windows Phone market, leaving just a small share for other players, including Samsung, HTC, Huawei, Acer, Asus and ZTE.
According to DigiTimes’ report, this group of companies (and we presume other potential contenders) don’t like Microsoft’s licensing rates, which are apparently higher than vendors are willing to pay. In comparison, Android is available free of charge.
Moreover, they say it’s not easy to compete with Nokia which has pretty much put whole company behind its Windows Phones. The Finns are known for their high-end camera technology that easily beats anything else on the market, while making Nokia smartphones that much more attractive for purchase — at least for platform-agnostic crowd.
Taiwan-based Acer and Asus, as well as China’s ZTE originally planned to launch WP8 smartphones in 2013 but have deferred the launch, DigiTimes’ sources reveal. Among the reasons quoted are the mentioned pricing issue and the inability to develop WP8 smartphones with functional differentiation that would make their handsets different that those made by Nokia…
We do understand those arguments and are wondering what will Microsoft do about them. Extending hardware support to more chip maker could certainly help. As usual, we’ll have to wait and see…