Orange, Nokia in Signature deal

French operator Orange stepped up its Signature phone strategy Wednesday, announcing a partnership with Nokia that will allow increased customisation of Symbian S60 devices.

Under the agreement, Nokia is to create an Orange specific software package to complement the Symbian S60 OS. This aim is to help S60 device manufacturers benefit from greater cost efficiency and shorter time-to-market when designing devices for Orange’s Signature portfolio.

The Signature strategy was designed to deliver a consistent user interface across a range of Orange devices.

Yves Maitre, vice president of devices at Orange, said: “By working with Nokia and S60 on Symbian OS we plan to bring increased consistency and efficiency to our signature customisation process. This benefits both handset manufactures and customers through an enhanced service experience and faster time to market.”

Nokia owns 47.9 per cent of Symbian, the company behind the OS.