Microsoft will increase its focus on making mobile phones part of its strategy to spread IT to people in developing nations, based partly on a prototype already developed for the purpose called Fone+ .
It's a subtle change from the past now that Craig Mundie, chief research and strategy officer at Microsoft, has taken over the company's Unlimited Potential Group, which focuses on the developing world. The group used to focus on ultra-low-cost laptops, shared computing and other initiatives, but the leadership change appears to put Windows Mobile and handsets into a primary role to spread computing to poor areas of the world.
Fone+ is an idea that's been around for a few years at Microsoft. Now, after testing prototypes, Mundie says it's clear such devices can lower the costs of computing for the poor.
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