HSINCHU, TAIWAN: Microsoft Corp. and MediaTek Inc., a semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions, announced a strategic partnership to provide a multimedia-rich smartphone solution primarily aimed at emerging markets.

As a result of this deal, consumers will be able to buy a wide range of feature-rich Windows phones with the best cost-performance ratio in the market.

Built on the Windows Phone 6 platform, these multimedia-rich smartphones will have full touch capabilities and offer advanced communication features including email and Internet access.

Daren Mancini, GM, OEM Mobile, Microsoft, said: "There is a huge thirst for smartphones in emerging markets. For many people, the phone rather than the PC is the main entry point to the Internet, resulting in a high demand for rich communication devices."

JiChang Hsu, executive vice president, MediaTek, said: "MediaTek is enabling handset manufacturers to optimize their product offerings to address a larger audience with competitive pricing on our smartphone solutions."