Qualcomm and Microsoft will work together to port the Windows Mobile operating system to certain Qualcomm chips, speeding time to market and potentially dropping the price of smart phones, the companies said on Thursday. By integrating and testing support for Windows Mobile on Qualcomm’s Mobile Station Modem chips, the companies hope to help device makers speed product development times, they said. The support could also help lower costs for device makers. Handset manufacturers that use the integrated chips won’t have to buy a separate application processor, said Carolina Milanesi, an analyst with Gartner. “That will have an implication on the building material cost, and it will drop that cost down,” she said. The collaboration is also likely to help Windows Mobile win inroads into markets like North America and parts of Asia where code division multiple access (CDMA) has a foothold, she said. CDMA is the mobile telecommunications technology developed by Qualcomm. Microsoft and Qualcomm also say their collaboration will help extend the battery life of devices running the integrated chips. The chips are expected to become available to handset makers in the second half of this year and should hit shelves in 2007. Microsoft introduced the latest version of Windows Mobile last year, but a critical feature, push e-mail, has only recently become available to users. Windows Mobile competes with other popular mobile operating systems including Symbian’s, which has the bulk of the market share, and Research in Motion’s operating system.-Nancy Gohring, IDG News ServiceFor related news coverage, read Qualcomm Inks 1st Patent Deal for WiMax Product.Check out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content Feature Industry clouds prove their business value Born of partnerships and ecosystem-centric by their nature, cloud solutions aimed at specific verticals are taking root, forming a complex, rapidly evolving market CIOs must be strategic about entering. By Paula Rooney Mar 24, 2023 7 mins Cloud Computing Feature What is data governance? Best practices for managing data assets Data governance defines roles, responsibilities, and processes for ensuring accountability for and ownership of data assets across the enterprise. By Thor Olavsrud Mar 24, 2023 10 mins IT Governance Frameworks Big Data Data Mining BrandPost Stay in Control of Your Data with a Secure and Compliant Sovereign Cloud By Stan Kwong Mar 23, 2023 6 mins Cloud Security Cloud Computing News Accenture to lay off 19,000 to cut costs amid economic uncertainty Technology services giant Accenture will continue to hire but meanwhile is cutting staff to streamline operations in the face of economic headwinds. By Anirban Ghoshal Mar 23, 2023 2 mins IT Consulting Services Technology Industry Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe