Windows Phone should become Open Source
Microsoft revised Windows Mobile from scratch to Windows Phone in 2010. For a company that has significant portion of revenue coming from enterprise software licenses, this was seen as a major shift i.e. moving the focus from enterprise to consumer centric. Many hope that this new approach will help Microsoft to create a significant mark in the Smartphone market. It's been 4 years now and Windows Phone is still struggling to gain enough grounds to make its presence felt.
The competition among the smartphone makers is currently at many levels. At one end of the spectrum, Apple is dominating by providing all the components of its ecosystem, whereas on other, Google (true to its open source approach) provides every components modularly. Somewhere in the middle lies a very potent but yet-to-gain enough recognition is Microsoft with its Windows Phone.
The question here we are addressing is - "What should Microsoft do to gain the market share in smartphones?"
The options Microsoft has
- Improve the product appeal but investing more in to all departments
- Partnering with various collaborators
- Sell Windows Phone at a loss; hoping to compensate indirectly
- Or perhaps something.
Smartphone Market
The smartphone manufacturers shipped about 1 billion phones in 2013, 38% increase from previous year 2012 (725 million). Windows Phones in 2013 managed to sell only 30 million. It is estimated that by the year 2018, more than 2.73 billion smartphones will be sold. The sales data confirms that why it is important and relevant to be in smartphone business.
Total Mobile Users vs Windows Phone Users
In the last 4 yrs, the market share of smartphones has grown from 19% to 57% of the total mobile phones sold. But since 2010, Windows phone has not managed to give any serious competition to its rivals. Its market share has been around 3%. Worst of all, Windows Phone has not been able to capitalise on the grow of the market.
iOS vs Android vs Windows Phones
iOS, Android, and Windows Phone differ in the way their phones are distributed in the Market. iOS supplies tightly integrated hardware and software, Android allows manufacturer to customise the software according to their needs and whims, and Microsoft licenses Windows phone operating system. To compete with growing iOS market, google and Microsoft have established their own dedicated hardware units for their software suits.
Apple claims that a closed ecosystem gives it a freedom to experience. It is one of the main reasons of providing superior user experience. Android thrives on volume and innovation. Microsoft Windows Phone have unique tile concept and integrates with other software services such as XBox, skype, and Microsoft Office.
Apple
- ~ 20% of market share
- 3-4 options of devices to customers
- Considered expensive i.e. high end phones
- Rich in user experience & features
- 1.3 million apps on AppStore
- Flagship Brand - iPhone
Android
- > 75% of market share
- High Choices; Numerous manufacturers - ranges of products from the likes of LG G Flex ($1000) to Jivi JSP 20 ($30)
- Leader in introducing features
- 1.4 million apps on Google Play
- Flagship brand - Nexus
Windows Phone
- Around 3.5% of Market Share
- Limited Choices; mainly medium to high end phones
- Limited features
- 300K apps
- Flagship brand - Lumia
Chicken and Egg Situation
Microsoft Windows Phone faces chicken and egg situation.
- More users make phones more popular
- Popularity of phone/platform attract more app developers
- More app developers brings more apps, and hence more features
- More features makes smartphones more desirable i.e. bring more users
Microsoft has a good product that fits well with its ecosystem and provides decent user experience. It has been 4 years now and still hasn't gain enough popularity. This is a critical time for Microsoft. Market share for Windows Phone has been fluctuating. Couple of quarters of bad results because of better leading products and they might have to close the shop. And if one observes closely competitors are anything but slowing down. Apple has been very aggressive towards improving its range of services and Android has always given them close run.
What Microsoft needs
What Microsoft needs is a complete change in the strategy for its Windows Phone.
Windows Phone Open Source: Microsoft should make its Windows Phone an open source and free. This move will help in following ways:
- Reduce the cost of development, distribution, and support
- Faster enhancements, Secure, and Rich feature
- Gain popularity and respect
- Make money from selling supportive services
Free Window Development Kit: Microsoft should distribute its application development kit for free - much like its express edition but only full edition. This move will make the platform developer friendly.
Xamarin: Microsoft should purchase Xamarin and integrate it with its free development kit. Or can explore the possibilities of taking Xamarin to cloud based development platform with subscription model.
- Free and easy development kit will ensure mobile apps are created for Microsoft Platforms
- This gesture will regain the respect for Microsoft among developers
Startups: Microsoft should refocus it's Accelerators/Ventures devision, BizSparks, and other to work closely with startups.
- Complement with internal innovation (?)
- Catch the birds early
Better Focus: Once the open source platform is released, Microsoft may find internal teams less chaotic and better focused towards build core applications
- Deeper integration with other Microsoft services i.e. Skype calls merge with phone calls (when in wifi), Business continuity, SkyDrive integration, XBox games with windows phones, Office 365 and other unlimited possibilities.
- Work on making Windows Phone more compatible with other phones
- Better marketing and positioning
Desperate times needs bolder moves. Going open source with Windows Phone will help Microsoft to enjoy the market leader position in few years. It might be difficult move for a company that has earned majority of the revenue from software licensing over the years but if one reads the recent clues more deeply, it is actually inline with the current Microsoft trends - Cross platform compatibility for Microsoft band, Considering to release Microsoft Cortana in all platforms, and .NET core framework to Linux OS.
Making Windows Phone OS open source will require a change in mindset for Microsoft and it is understandable that it won't come easy but this approach is the most potent and promisable approach to save a GREAT PRODUCT.
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