Microsoft Unveils New Operating System For Smart Phones

LOS ANGELES (CBS/AP) — Microsoft Corp. knows the cell phone world is where it's happening, and it's determined to be a part of it.

After years of declining sales of phones based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile software, the company is starting with a fresh slate — a completely new operating system for phones.

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The new handsets will go up against Apple Inc.'s highly popular iPhone and the expanding number of phones running on Google Inc.'s Android operating system.

The first phone with Windows Phone 7 Series will be the Samsung Focus, which hits AT&T Inc. stores Nov. 8 for $200 with a two-year contract requirement, Microsoft said Monday. It will be closely followed by two more phones for AT&T, made by LG Electronics Inc. and HTC Corp., and one for T-Mobile USA, also made by HTC.

In May, Microsoft launched another new phone software package, Kin, only to yank it about two months later in the face of dismal sales. Windows Phone 7 Series is a different beast, and Microsoft is putting its full weight behind it.

In all, Microsoft announced nine phones for the U.S. market on Monday, including one from Dell Inc., and it has lined up 60 carriers in 30 countries to carry Windows Phone 7.

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