Windows Phone 7 will be GSM-only in 2010
When Windows Phone 7 arrives later this year, it will be sold globally, but only for GSM networks. Microsoft has opted to delay until next year the CDMA version as it works to finish work on its major rewrite of its phone operating system.
Context & Ripple Effects
Windows Phone 7 follows a long, uneven product timetable: coverage in 2008 reported a release slipping as far as 2010, and a 2009 report placed the platform in late 2010. Microsoft is bringing the rewritten phone OS to market before completing support for both major network standards.
The GSM-first plan makes network compatibility a launch constraint rather than merely a handset specification. Same-day coverage also identified Verizon as absent from the initial sales lineup, underscoring the immediate carrier-distribution gap.
First-order effects
- Microsoft can sell Windows Phone 7 through GSM networks in 2010, while CDMA carriers and their customers wait for the deferred 2011 version.
- Verizon is excluded from the initial Windows Phone 7 launch, limiting Microsoft's U.S. carrier reach at introduction.
Second-order effects
- GSM carriers gain the first opportunity to position Windows Phone 7 devices, while CDMA carriers cannot use the platform to compete for smartphone buyers until Microsoft completes its CDMA work.
- Handset partners must prioritize GSM variants for the initial release and delay CDMA-specific inventory and carrier certification work.
Third-order effects
- If major phone-platform launches continue to reach carriers in stages by network standard, carrier compatibility will shape early platform adoption as much as the operating system's software features.
- Microsoft's sequence illustrates the trade-off in a major OS rewrite: shipping one supported configuration earlier can shorten delay risk but narrows initial distribution.
The trend: Smartphone platforms are moving toward staged launches in which software readiness and carrier-network compatibility jointly determine market access.