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Comment by TheAnimus | Hacker News Reader

The whole elephant in the room about the Nokia should use Android thing is HTC.

HTC have, for a variety of reasons lost a lot of ground to Samsung.

The question I always find myself asking, is would Nokia have faired better there?

On WP they only have to out gun HTC really, thats it. On Android, Samsung are doing a good job carving out the high end, the mid range, and leaving the low to no profit margin to the Chinese and nock off brigade.

Will Nokia's Microsoft gamble pay off? Who knows, Would it have been raking in the billions if it had gone Android? Probably not, as HTC's problems show.

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At least HTC is profitable, along with a host of other OEMs that target China, India, and Europe. The reason that other OEMs like LG and Motorola are not profitable (but they aren't losing anywhere as much as Nokia is) is less to do with picking Android and more to do with the fact that they were doing very poorly before Android came around and Android was the main reason they are still relevant today.

As others have stated, there's nothing wrong with Nokia building out Windows Phone phones. The issue is exclusivity, which is understandable given the $1 billion a year Microsoft is paying them. I suppose we will see which way Nokia turns once that contract ends (whenever it does end).

They have to outgun Samsung on WP as well. On some metrics I have seen Nokia behind not only HTC, but Samsung for WP. Often when I go into an AT&T or other carrier store, way in the back away from the iPhones and Samsung Galaxy S3s will be a kiosk with some WPs, and Nokia sits next to the HTC and Samsung WP undistinguished - the sole representative of Nokia in a store filled with Apple and Samsung. They are a third rate player in a third rate operating system.

WPs market share is dismal, and brands like RIM (and Symbian!) have been losing market share, so it is certainly possible Microsoft can increase in market share. But I think every day that goes by, the chance of it becoming a dominant mobile player recedes. Apple took its place in the market years ago, and Android is now in an advanced state on many fronts - market share, ecosystem etc. Android is in a much more solid place then it was even a year ago, a hold which would be very difficult to dislodge.

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