Lenovo's Smart Assistant, a speaker made in collaboration with Amazon Alexa, will be available for purchase in May. (Photo : Getty Images)
Lenovo has recently announced that they are teaming up with Microsoft to bring the latter's apps on the former's Android devices which means customers will get Microsoft Office pre-installed on their purchase.
Pre-installed apps are common in all of Android smartphones but most of the said apps are from the OEM or from Google. Now, Lenovo will be pre-installing MS Office, Skype and OneDrive for their Android devices.
Microsoft does not really have a huge foothold in the mobile industry especially after their Nokia handset mishap. However, their mobile apps are still being used by many Android users and they have already inked similar deals with other popular OEMs.
Lenovo will be pre-installing the Microsoft apps across all of their Lenovo and Motorola Android devices, The Verge has learned. It is still unclear whether which future phones will be included in the deal and if the rumored Moto phones in development would be included in the deal with the Redmond-based company.
LG, ASUS, Dell, Sony, Xiaomi and even Samsung has also inked several deals with Microsoft which makes Lenovo's partnership make sense. The company could be aiming to spread their apps even further to gain more revenue in the long run as their Windows 10 mobile devices are still nothing but a single percentage in the global smartphone market.
Microsoft corporate VP OEM Division Nick Parker said that the company is thrilled with the deal with Lenovo, a press release stated. The deal includes a patent cross-licensing agreement that covers the Lenovo and Motorola devices although it is not disclosed whether there are any exceptions included.
The partnership will also help Microsoft gain more traction with their app sin China and other markets in Asia where Lenovo and Motorola devices have more market share. Microsoft already has a deal with Xiaomi and the new deal with Lenovo will increase their foothold more in the said market.
Lenovo will still need to confirm which of their upcoming Motorola and Lenovo Android devices will ship with the Microsoft apps pre-installed. Time will tell whether their customers will find the new deal beneficial or just another nuisance in their Android experience.
