Microsoft adds new web experiences to Windows Phone 7

Microsoft announced a series of new additions to its forthcoming Windows Phone 7 mobile operating system, promising tighter cloud-based integration between mobile devices and PCs. Among the new features: Windows Phone Live, a companion site giving WP7 users a centralized hub to view pictures they've published, browse their Windows Live calendar and contacts, exchange OneNote files and access other information shared between the phone and the web. Writing on the Windows Phone Blog, Microsoft director of mobile communications Aaron Woodman notes the Windows Phone Live site offers 25GB of free SkyDrive storage--it also hosts the new Find My Phone service, enabling consumers to locate and manage a missing phone with map, ring, lock and erase capabilities. Woodman additionally touted a WP7 push notification service enabling applications to deliver real-time updates via live Tiles on the device homescreen.

Woodman writes that Microsoft remains on track to introduce Windows Phone 7 devices prior to the holiday season, adding that the platform will support five languages at launch: English, French, Italian, German and Spanish. Microsoft's Windows Phone Marketplace application storefront will support sales in 17 countries: The U.S., Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland and the U.K. "This is a fresh start for Microsoft's mobile efforts; one in which we put the end user experiences at the center of every decision we make, from architecting a new design and integrated on-phone experiences, to taking more accountability for the hardware and application development platform," Woodman states.

Microsoft first unveiled Windows Phone 7 in mid-February, touting an experience distinguished by a more user-friendly design as well as close integration with applications and the web. Speaking Monday at Microsoft's annual Worldwide Partner Conference in Washington D.C., CEO Steve Ballmer admitted the software giant's current Windows Mobile platform lost a "whole generation of users" to Apple's iPhone and Google's Android, but promised Windows Phone 7 will right the ship. Ballmer said the company will aggressively promote Windows Phone 7 across smartphones as well as tablets, with partners including Dell, Sony, Asus and Samsung committed to releasing WP7-powered products in "the next few months."

The Register reports Ballmer identified the consumer segment as the Holy Grail, contending that their influence now shapes the thinking of enterprise IT departments. "We will give you a set of Windows-based devices that people will be proud to carry at home and will fit the kinds of scenarios enterprise IT's trying to make happen with the phone form factor," Ballmer said. "We are going to reach out to work vigorously with you to drive enterprise IT and consumers... they've got to come into IT and say 'I want a Windows 7 slate' and 'I want an Windows 7 phone.'"

For more on the Windows Phone 7 enhancements:
 - read this Windows Phone Blog entry 

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