One of our Team GigaOM folks snapped this picture of a massive Nokia billboard in Berlin last month that suggests the company is on the comeback trail. That’s an inspiring message, but I haven’t yet seen the billboard that tells us when the comeback begins. OK, I’m being facetious, and you can’t say Nokia hasn’t been trying during its difficult transition from Symbian to Windows Phone.
At this point, Nokia’s success is tied directly to that of Microsoft and the Windows Phone 8 platform. Both companies have to convince current smartphone owners that Windows Phone 8 has more to offer than iOS or Android. The other group — first time smartphone owners — is the other area of opportunity, but with the mindset that there are really only two horses in this race right now, that road is going to be a tough one as well. I’m still hopeful that Windows 8 sales help drive consumers to the commonly shared interface on Windows Phone 8, but I’ve seen little evidence yet of that situation playing out so far.
Thanks much to Connie Hwong, our GigaOM community manager, for snapping and sharing the pic!
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