Follow up: Microsoft has finally found its smartphone: Why the Samsung Galaxy partnership is so promising
Actors and musicians usually make special celebrity appearances at big tech press events.
Samsung took a different route on Wednesday at Galaxy Unpacked 2019 as the mobile giant surprised the crowd by inviting Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on stage.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is the surprise guest. These companies are tight. #SamsungEvent #Note10 pic.twitter.com/heKLN1gzCP
— Lance Ulanoff (@LanceUlanoff) August 7, 2019
$MSFT CEO Satya Nadella is surprise special guest and gets probably biggest applause from this audience #Unpacked2019 #Note10Plus #Note10 pic.twitter.com/CwbMJHuHgU
— Hope King (@lisahopeking) August 7, 2019
So why was Nadella there? Samsung and Microsoft are cozying up in a big way across various products and services.
Expanding our partnership with @Samsung to help people be more productive on any device, anywhere – bringing together our intelligent experiences with Samsung’s powerful, new devices. https://t.co/ljWtriQQ9x
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) August 7, 2019
Samsung today unveiled its new flagship Note 10 device, which has Windows 10 integration features meant to bridge the gap between PCs and smartphones. The Verge reported that the Note 10 has “more Microsoft in it than any other Android phone,” including several native apps such as Outlook, OneDrive, and Your Phone, which lets users make and receive calls from their Windows 10 device, among other features.
Microsoft and Samsung have been forming this partnership for months. It's very deep, and involves collaboration in retail, cloud, and devices. You'll notice in Microsoft Stores that products will be matched like this from now on https://t.co/oBLOvSarQY pic.twitter.com/Fr0To3wxkr
— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) August 7, 2019
Samsung and Microsoft have partnered in the past but today’s announcements mark a doubling down of sorts. It’s notable given Microsoft’s past struggles with its smartphone business and Samsung’s relationship with other tech giants. And it’s a departure from five years ago, when Microsoft sued Samsung over Android patent licensing deal.
What’s interesting is that Samsung is obviously reliant on Google for its mobile OS, but I’m not sure the word “Android” was even uttered today. Instead we’re hearing about direct sharing from Note10 phones to Microsoft software and Windows running on a Samsung clamshell.
— Lauren Goode (@LaurenGoode) August 7, 2019
less than three months ago, Bill Gates said, 'We missed being the dominant mobile operating system by a very tiny amount' https://t.co/beeusOivMx
— Jordan Novet (@jordannovet) August 7, 2019
Microsoft will sell the Note 10 in its Microsoft Store locations around the world. Samsung also today unveiled the new Galaxy Book S which was developed in partnership with Microsoft and Qualcomm. Check out Microsoft’s blog post for more details.
