Microsoft is planning to release Windows Phone 7 in the next couple of months and we know that AT&T plans to be the premier carrier for the new mobile OS. We all kind of assumed that Verizon would be on board with WP7, too, but today a Verizon spokesperson said that that would not be the case. During an interview with BusinessWeek, Verizon spokesperson Brenda Raney stated that Verizon will not be offering a Windows Phone 7 device any time this year, but that they will "probably" launch a phone in 2011. Raney also said that Verizon's relationship with Microsoft "is solid" after the failed launch of Microsoft's KIN a few months ago.
While Microsoft and Windows Phone 7 will be getting quite a bit of support from AT&T and will also be releasing a handset with T-Mobile, this news is still quite a blow to Microsoft's plans for their new OS. Sure, Verizon will be launching a WP7 phone eventually, but Microsoft wants adoption of the platform to spread quickly, and the potential for it to grow after launch is hampered a bit without the nation's largest carrier on board on day one. Maybe Verizon is even cozier with Google and Android than we thought?
Via BusinessWeek
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