Nokia retail stores being rebranded to Microsoft Priority Resellers

NEW DELHI: Microsoft Corp has began rebranding the Nokia retail stores world over, from India on Tuesday, even as it plans to rebrand 9,000 stores across the country to Microsoft Priority Resellers.

The Redmond headquartered company will rebrand the stores into two categories - Microsoft Priority Resellers and Microsoft Mobile Sellers - where the former would have all Microsoft products including XBox gaming consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and accessories.

Chris Weber, corporate vice president, Microsoft Mobile Device Sales, who was in Gugraon to launch the first store worldwide, said that more than half the stores across other markets were in India, underlining the importance of the South Asian nation.

"Of 16,000 stores in all markets, 9000 are in India. We will invest more in India than any other market in the world for rebranding," he said.

Microsoft will also re-enter the premium smartphone space within this calendar year, Weber said, the same time that it may take for the company to bring in its latest Windows 10 operating system.

India, the fastest growing smartphone market in the world, could well be the first market where the premium smartphone will be launched, Weber said. With this, Microsoft will have a full fledged device portfolio which will help it compete in the market, even as it continues focus on the affordable segment.