Weekly sales of Windows Phone powered smartphones at MTS’ new “demo zone” feature outlets have grown a sturdy 2.5 times over the past four months, and tablet PC sales have shown a 30% increase, MTS announced last week.
Such are the early results of a strategic initiative the Russian mobile phone operator launched with Microsoft last November to promote Windows 8 “Ecosystem Demo Zones” through its retail chains.
By the end of 2012, 20 such “demo zones” had opened at MTS’ retail stores in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and in the Urals’ Ekaterinburg, offering customers consultations and selling Windows 8 enabled devices complete with mobile Internet solutions. Windows Phone powered smartphones account for 20-to-25% of all gadgets such outlets market.
Last month, as an expansion of the joint project – the first of its kind both in Russia and in Central and Eastern Europe – MTS undertook to promote Microsoft’s Office 365 cloud solution through its corporate service packages.
