Nokia to undercut Android pricing in U.S. Windows Phone push

Nokia (NYSE:NOK) is planning an all-out effort to make sure that its decision to switch to Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows Phone pays off in the U.S. market, the head of Nokia's U.S. subsidiary said. 

Nokia President Chris Weber said the company intends to release numerous phones at a variety of price points, including some that undercut the cheapest smartphones running Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android platform. He told the Business Insider that lowering prices is "the quickest way to gain market share."

Weber also said a key part of Nokia's strategy will be to make sure that Nokia's Windows Phone devices are displayed prominently and touted by retail sales representatives in carriers' stores. He said Nokia is working with Microsoft to ensure Nokia's devices are at the forefront of Microsoft's planned retail store expansion. Additionally, Weber said Nokia will work with the enterprise sales forces of its carrier partners to push its phones to business users.

Earlier this week, Weber revealed that Nokia will soon stop selling both feature phones and Symbian-based smartphones in the United States and Canada.

Meanwhile, speculation continues to swirl over when Microsoft will release the "Mango" version of its mobile phone operating system. The blog Pocket-Lint, citing unnamed sources, said that Microsoft plans to release the updated software to users starting Sept. 1. In a Twitter post, Windows Phone Vice President Joe Belfiore said only: "Sept. 1? Just a rumor."

For more:
- see this Business Insider article
- see this Pocket-Lint post
- see this Twitter post

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