Nokia predicts natural attrition of Symbian

Nokia’s VP Purnima Kochikar confirmed in an open letter to developers that Symbian will likely fade away, though the handset manufacturer is planning to introduce a number of devices during the "transition period" of 2011-2012 that would feature the Symbian operating system.

"In many markets, including markets where Symbian is currently the lead smartphone platform with significant market share, such as China, India, Russia and Turkey, we will continue to make our Symbian portfolio as competitive as possible while we work with Microsoft to introduce Windows Phone," Kochikar said in the statement. No specific date has been offered as to when the manufacturer will stop supporting Symbian.

Nokia has also begun a rebranding phase, where promotional materials feature a new font, named "Nokia Pure". The aim of this new font and text is to look "pure and simple" along with conveying the "the impression of forward movement."

When Nokia announced its partnership with Microsoft in February 2011 to form a broad strategic partnership using their complementary strengths and expertise, it said it would continue supporting Symbian, though its primary mobile operating system would become Windows Phone. Nokia said Symbian would become a “franchise platform”, and the company still expects to sell approximately 150 million more Symbian devices in the years to come.