Nokia is preparing to launch smartphones tailored for Chinese consumers. The Director General of the Finnish group, Stephen Elop, has launched in Beijing two models based on the combined Lumia Lumia 610 and 800, but tailored to the Chinese networks, to compete with Apple and Samsung.
Running Microsoft software, these smartphones will be sold by China Telecom, the third telecom operator in the country, and will be available on the Chinese market from the second quarter.
With these new devices, Nokia aims to boost its declining sales in one of the most strategic market for manufacturers of smartphones. The market share of Nokia in China for this segment fell 30% last year, according to research firm Strategy Analytics. Microsoft’s share in smartphones dropped to 2% in the last quarter, against 3% a year ago and 13% four years ago, according to the firm.