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It's a new day, so we have some new information
regarding the upcoming Nokia Ace (or Lumia 900). Yesterday we told you
about its specs and gave you a rough mockup of the device, and today we
have some intel surrounding the phone's launch. First of all, it will happen in ‘late March'. That bodes nicely with a past rumor claiming that the superphone will be in stores on March 18. Nothing as specific today, but it's pretty clear that the Ace will be released in March. Apparently, the Ace will be a ‘hero' device on AT&T, meaning that the carrier itself will be actively promoting the phone through ads and retail channels. Nokia Lumia 900 (Ace) mockup (left) alongside the Nokia Lumia 800 (right) Image via PocketNow But that's not all. To ensure that the Lumia 900 will be a success in the US, Nokia, Microsoft, and AT&T will pour a staggering total of $100 million into the phone's marketing campaign throughout the second quarter of this year (so April to June). We don't know exactly how that sum will be split between Nokia, Microsoft, and AT&T, yet we're willing to bet that Microsoft will be the main financial contributor to this campaign. After all, it's in desperate need of a ‘hero' device for the entire Windows Phone platform, especially in the US, and the Lumia 900 might just be it. So far, Windows Phone has a smartphone market share of just 5.4% in the US, so something clearly needs to be done. This campaign and the Nokia Ace's launch will undoubtedly also impact future similar endeavors for Windows Phones in the US. If the Nokia Ace is successful, then expect many more similar (and similarly-priced) marketing blitzes to follow. If not, then… well, we'll see. Microsoft certainly has the money to keep throwing at the Windows Phone ‘problem', so it's not clear that it would give up so soon. One way or another, Nokia's big splashy re-entrance in the US market is about to happen very soon. Brace yourselves. | |
