US software giant Microsoft is in talks with Verizon Wireless to launch a touch-screen cellphone early next year in a bid to compete with Apple's iPhone, The Wall Street Journal reported on April 28.
The Journal, citing "people familiar with the matter," said Microsoft is involved in the design of the phone's software and hardware but a third-party was expected to make the handset. The newspaper said the device would use Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system and would also likely include its new Windows Marketplace for Mobile, a mobile application store like Apple's successful App Store. The Journal said Microsoft's cellphone project is code-named "Pink."