All
future Windows-based phones will come running Windows 8 when it’s released
later this year. However, Microsoft said yesterday during a developer conference
that the mobile version of Windows 8 would not be backwards compatible with
existing Windows Phone devices. 

Microsoft
has been cautious until now about its plans for running Windows 8 on mobile.
Earlier this week the company unveiled the Microsoft Surface, a new tablet that
comes running Windows 8. Microsoft is betting on a strategy that will leverage
Windows 8 in an effort to unify its mobile and desktop environments.  

The
mobile version of Windows 8 brings with it some new features and updates to the
existing Windows Phone 7 series of smartphones. Devices running Windows 8 for
mobile will offer dual-core chips, more variety in screen size and more apps. 

The
company also detailed a native wallet solution for Windows 8 which aims to
compete with similar offerings from Google Wallet and Apple PassBook. Microsoft
confirmed that its digital wallet offering will include functionality. 

Microsoft
has been aggressively pursuing rivals Apple and Google in the mobile space on a
number of fronts. The company’s partnership with Nokia has yet to bear fruit,
as Windows Phone’s market share continues to flag. Research firm IDC recently
released numbers showing that Windows Phone controls just 2 percent of global
market share, while Google’s Android controls 59 percent, and Apple’s iOS 23
percent.

Perhaps one of Microsoft’s key strengths
in its mobile play has been strong support from operators here in the United
States. AT&T Mobility President and CEO Ralph de la Vega recently praised Nokia’s
Windows-based Lumia phones during an investor conference.  

“A
bad phone with a low subsidy doesn’t sell and gets returned,” De la Vega
said, noting that AT&T sales of Nokia’s Lumia devices have “exceeded
expectations.” 

AT&T
is rumored to have spent a bundle on a massive advertising campaign around
Nokia’s Lumia line of phones, presumably in an effort to wean itself off the
high subsidies of the iPhone, which have bolstered its subscriber numbers over
the past few years.  

Verizon
Wireless and T-Mobile USA have also both pledged to support Windows Phone.