Nokia, Our tie up with Microsoft is unique

Microsoft's association with HTC and Samsungfor Windows devices will not impact Nokia's relationship with the software goliath but grow the ecosystem for Windows-based smartphones. Nokia's chief marketing officer Tuula Rytila tells Gulveen Aulakh the company will pitch its flagship device Lumia 920 more aggressively in India where it wants more people to move to smartphones. Excerpts:


Microsoft is also investing in marketing with other partners like HTC and Samsung. It has branded the HTC Windows phone as Windows 8X. Does Nokia's relationship with Microsoft get impacted? What leverage does Nokia have compared to others that use Android to keep Microsoft on the edge?
Our partnership with Microsoft has been unique but not exclusive. We want HTC and Samsung to also support Windows phone since increased awareness for Windows is good. It takes more time to build the whole ecosystem ourselves, so from that perspective, it's good to have competition.

In our partnership with Microsoft, we contribute elements to the platform that others don't. The mapping platform for the whole ecosystem is powered by Nokia. We have had more time to work on our differentiators and we can be competitive. The real competition is with Android but we know that once consumers start using Windows, they love it. So we need to get more people to try it.

Microsoft hasn't publicly demonstrated Windows 8 but Lumia 920 will run on it. But why would a customer buy a phone without a clue about the OS?Microsoft will launch Windows 8 on October 29. The devices are coming to the market a little late. There's enough time for a consumer to understand the OS before Lumia 920 arrives.

When will the Windows 8 Lumia 920 be launched in India? When do the pre-orders begin?
We haven't decided the date for either. Pre-orders have begun in some markets and the response has been better than last year's Windows phone launch.

Customers who were using Symbian haven't moved to Lumia or Windows but to Android. How do you get them back?We've had a promising start with Lumia 610, but we can bring the device to more accessible price-points. So we should see more consumers making the switch. With the new platform, we will have the high-end and the whole range and we will make more announcements at the appropriate time. We know from early testing that our product resonates with the consumer. So we expect to be relevant in India's high-end space in 2013.

To what degree can marketing help improve brand perception, given that Nokia's lost its sheen,market share & revenues worldwide.

If you look at our portfolio today, it has been completely revitalised- bringing together a differentiated experience that makes it stand apart . We believe with our 'bold, fun and youthful' brand marketing drive, we've yet again struck a chord with our target audience, especially the youth.

Nokia's Blown away by Lumia' campaign when Lumia 800 was launched didn't go down well with some rivals. What would you do different with Lumia 920 now that a Windows phone is no longer a novelty?
We want to do more competition demos and show how we are better. We will be more aggressive. It could be Windows vs Windows phone. People want to experience high-end devices live before buying.

How is Nokia targeting marketing at high-end customers? How will you market Lumia 920 here?The high-end user is a young consumer. So the communication with this segment has to be done using the right channels. For instance, in our association with Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, we get them to use maps to get routes to the stadium. They can also engage with the brand online. Some platforms are sharply focused on youth like Nokia India Fest where we get them to use and experience apps and music.

Would Nokia adopt Apple's strategy of cutting prices of older models only when the upgrade comes or continue following the traditional model of having a portfolio of handsets across a price range?
For markets like India and China, we have to follow the portfolio approach. In Symbian, we have launched models at aspirational prices and eroded it to more accessible price-points, which has been our model and we've done that with multiple devices. The Windows 8 Phone is partly upgradable so there will be a version that will be for the old hardware as well.