Microsoft is about to complete its acquisition of Nokia and that’s something other Windows Phone makers don’t like. After the deal is closed, the Redmond giant will end-up owning up to 90% of the Windows Phone market, leaving little or no room for competitors.
And that’s not something Microsoft wants. In order to have a thriving eco-system that can compete with Android, it needs multiple vendors offering Windows Phone devices. But with others’ interest veining, Ballmer & Co. need to bribe them to get them back on board.
According to Mobile-Review’s Eldar Murtazin, Microsoft will spend some $2.6 billion to subsidize other handset makers. Of that cash, the biggest chunk goes to Samsung, which will get $1.2 billion, followed by Huawei ($600 million), Sony ($500 million) and others ($300 million). HTC is (un)surprisingly not on the list though it could go home with some money from those $300 million.
As a reminder, at the time Nokia announced support for Windows Phone, it apparently received no less than $1 billion from Microsoft. Now other handset makers want a similar treatment; we’ll see whether all that extra cash will help them sell more Windows Phones…
UPDATE: Microsoft reacted to the news saying they do co-marketing with partners but these numbers are complete fiction.
[Via: Unwired View]