Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 potential marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Summary: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer gave analysts a glimpse at the software giant's marketing around Windows Phone 7. The plan: Let Windows Phone 7 ride shotgun with Windows 7. The punchline: "I'm a phone too."
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer gave analysts a glimpse at the software giant's potential marketing around Windows Phone 7. The plan: Let Windows Phone 7 ride shotgun with Windows 7. The possible punchline: "I'm a phone too."
Here's a slide from Ballmer's presentation:
Will this pitch work? Ballmer thinks the 'I'm a phone too' line certainly won't hurt. He said:
I think it's probably fair to say we have a lot of work to do and all not going to happen over night. The opportunity to do interesting work, differentiated work, to build marketshare, it is actually pretty good in the phone space right now.
The focus we had on two things, number one, to make sure that we're doing the software right, the end user experience right. We actually designed kind of the core hardware platform for these things, chassis specification, the OEMs, the hub vendors innovate on top of that so we have guaranteed set of hardware on which to do this kind of interesting and exciting and usable software. I think it's been -- gives us phenomenal opportunity.
And then there's the marketing hook:
Part of what we'll be doing is driving kind of integrated set of thinking, branding. We'll be really aggressively marketing Windows Phone. Both Windows PCs in all form factors and Windows Phones will get pretty aggressive marketing support, if you will.
What's your take?
Update: Microsoft said that the 'I'm a phone too' is not an official marketing line and I updated the post accordingly. A Microsoft spokesperson said:
Steve Ballmer did not announce a new tag line or marketing pitch for the company’s Windows Phone 7 phone. The “ I’m a phone too” comments he made were simply part of the dialogue that he was having with the audience. Microsoft has not confirmed or announced any details about its marketing plans for Windows Phone 7.
More from Microsoft's analyst meeting:
- Microsoft's Ballmer: Windows 7 slates are 'job number one'
- Steve Ballmer: Microsoft has been focusing on cloud for 15 years
- Microsoft's stump speech: We're leading the cloud parade
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 beta due in September
- Microsoft: We are focusing on eight core businesses
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Talkback
WP7: "I'm a phone only" (doesn't do anything else)
iOS: "I'm a phone, or an iPod, or an iPad"
Windows Phone 7: "I'm a phone only. My boss doesn't think I can work on a slate, and will use something else"
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
You do know that WP7 is WinCE 7, which also runs on all kinds of POS systems, GPS, and even in car (i.e. Ford Sync) do you?
Please, educate yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Embedded_CE_7.0
Windows Phone 7 has been rejected
Yeah and Sync is useless!!!!
MS can keep Windows 7 on its phone. My advice to all my clients!!
STAY AWAY from MS.
You want something that doesn't require much intelligence or just want to play games and music use an Apple 3GS
You want something that is really is useful but needs some knowledge and common sense behind it, you get a Kindle, a GPS, a Camera, a HotSpot, Full internet Support, need instant translation, the fastest way to type on a cellphone (swype) and very small laptop that can use a wireless keyboard and wireless monitor (dlna) use Android.
You want something that makes call but can't do much more use Windows 7..
You want to show something you can show nice photos off with but can't use 3G signal or a phone use an Apple's 4G.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
You mean the WinCE on an ATM that got hacked yesterday?
Most of the GPS systems (Garmin, TomTom) run Linux or some flavor therof.
Ford Sync is great but hobbled by the MS connection (I own a Ford with it and am qualified to say this).
CE is not a good thing.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Perhaps you should have read that entry yourself?
The part where it states that the official Microsoft position is that "Windows Phone 7 is currently based on Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3 with some features borrowed from Windows Embedded CE 7.0, thus making it a hybrid solution"
BTW, what was the release date for the Windows CE 7.0 that all those point of sale and other systems are running on? Inquiring minds are eager to know.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Linux systems get hacked all the time too. Really stop spreading the FUD that ANY OS is secure by design. That's a lie. Sure good design helps but it's not foolproof.
One of my favorite vBulletin sites was hacked this week and bought it down for two days. The processes couldn't even be traced the job was so good.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Windows Phone 7 is <i>based</i> on Windows Embedded Compact 7.
Ford Sync and all kinds of POS systems are Windows CE 6.x.
What's the difference? WP7 is developed in Silverlight. WinCE in Compact .net Framework. If you are not a developer, you have no idea of the difference. Else you would say that Windows 7 and Windows Mobile are the same, because both are called windows.
Please educate yourself with more than the Wikipedia.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Mr. itguy08,
Surely you read your news, news full of stories of massive thefts of information derived from Linux based systems, yet you refuse to ever mention them.
Honesty does not appear to be a trait present in many of you humans, though I believe that it is your "pride" that is coloring your comments negativelly.
:|
You could have stopped...
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
So Android and iOS are jacks of all trades, master of none.
WP7: I like to move it move it.
The tablet PC is from yesteryear
Who are the masters of multitouch? iOS and Android. Who is the jack of all trades? The old Tablet PC with multitouch bolted on as an afterthought.
Who has the most multitouch apps? Android and iOS are the winners. PC software was designed for a mouse.
Microsoft should have used Windows Phone 7 in the slate, but obviously did not think it would succeed in this market.
Actually the master is iOS .... Android is still buggy
Phone only huh?
Forget the integrated Facebook and Twitter, forget integrated Office, and forget that you can develop for it. Yeah, it's just a phone.
Why don't you put your money where your mouth is and develop an app for it?
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Danger, like I'm supposed to take you sseriously?
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
"I'm a phone too" would be perfectly appropriate for a 'me too' product which will only make Android look better.
RE: Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 marketing pitch: 'I'm a phone too'
Tim Patterson is partially correct...
Perhaps MS should change that to "I'm a wannabe too".
As far as android goes.. Looks like Google is walling that garden... They nixed over 6000 apps in the last week.. And they are starting to figure out that a lot of the apps steal identities...
Google is in a lose/lose situation... If they continue walling their garden, then they sand to piss off the Rabid Roid boys that they call customers... If they don't, no one will want a Roid phone because of all the malware... But that is good news for the MS Ballmer feltchers, because the WP7 "wannabe" actually stands a chance against all the Roid phones.
http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/20100729/hows-apples-walled-garden-look-now/?reflink=ATD_yahoo_ticker
http://seekingalpha.com/article/217277-when-closed-is-better-than-open-apple-vs-google?source=email
http://www.omgandroid.com/google-started-removing-applications-android-market/
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/186720/malware_android_apps_threaten_mobile_security.html