Leading regional telecom group Zain said it has entered into an agreement with Microsoft Middle East and Africa to bring the Windows Phone devices to the Mena region.

The planned launch of Windows Phone software later this year, jointly with smartphone devices from selected manufacturers, will target business and consumers across Zain’s mobile operations in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and South Sudan.

The partnership with Microsoft complements and follows other technology ventures that Zain has recently entered into in order to enrich the company’s offering of mobile services in line with our customer’s growing appetite for smartphones and applications, said the Kuwaiti telco giant.

It will allow consumers across the region to purchase a variety of the latest devices from various manufacturers of Windows Phone devices that enable and compliment their digital lifestyles.

Windows Phone offers a fresh approach to mobile device software, distinguished by smart design and truly integrated experiences that bring to the surface the content people are most interested from the Web and applications.

Individual country access to the Windows Phone devices will be rolled out with the first launch set to take place later this year. 

'This partnership will foster the development of an applications ecosystem within Zain’s mobile network, facilitating developers to create and publish applications for the marketplace,' said Zain Group CEO Nabeel Bin Salamah at the Mobile World Congress held last week in Barcelona.
 
The smartphone has become a necessary item in today’s society, and this agreement with Microsoft is just the beginning of yet another example of Zain delivering on its brand promise to achieve our vision of ‘A Wonderful World’, he remarked.

'We have the utmost confidence in the capabilities of Windows smartphone technology and believe such an appealing offering will further attract, empower and enhance the lifestyles of our customers,' he added.

Gustavo Fuchs, Microsoft mobility director, MEA said smartphone growth was fuelling the global mobile phone market and Windows Phone was poised to lead the trend.

'In fact, the International Data Corporation (IDC) recently projected that Windows Phone will have the second largest share of the smartphone market by 2015,' he stated.

“We are seeing huge smartphone growth in the region and this is expected to continue with a prediction of 38 per cent year-on-year growth for 2012. The partnership with local mobile phone operators will help drive the appetite of consumers in the region,” Fuchs added.-TradeArabia News Service