For those of you that were at Worldwide Partner Conference 2011 with us in Los Angeles, you may have heard the exciting announcements that were made for our partners that obtain or have the Mobility competency as well as for all partners with competencies in regards to Windows Phone hardware and service plan discounts. For those of you that weren’t there, or even those who were but may have missed this, I wanted to recap these here for you so that you are aware and know how to utilize these as a Microsoft partner.

First, to help the Microsoft partners with the Mobility competency help differentiate themselves from the crowd, we are now offering a distinctive Microsoft Partner Network Marketplace logo that you can add to your Windows Phone app icons so that when people see them in the Windows Phone Marketplace, they can quickly see that these applications are being offered by Microsoft partners with either a Gold Mobility competency or a Silver Mobility competency. Here are a couple of example logos showing how Microsoft Mobility Competency partners can use these on their application icons:

Next, to help our partners when it comes to the phones themselves and the service plans that go with them, we announced that we have put together the following agreements for all competency partners (not just the mobility competency) to help you out:

• Provider: eXpansys
  • Offer: Up to 33% discount on unlocked GSM Windows phone devices
  • Availability: Worldwide
• Provider: Sprint
  • Offer: Enterprise discounts on voice and data plans
  • Availability: Currently U.S. only
• Provider: T-Mobile
  • Offer: Enterprise discounts on voice and data plans
  • Availability: Currently U.S. only
    

So what are Microsoft partners saying about the opportunity that Windows Phone provides? Have a look for yourself:

Some other resources to check out:

• View Andy Lees’ presentation from WPC on the Mobile Opportunity with Windows Phone where he discussed these offers, benefits, and more HERE on the Digital WPC site
• Read the official announcement on the Microsoft News Center
• View the details of the offers above on the Windows Phone Discount Program for Partners page Microsoft Partner Network portal
  • Includes: FAQ’s, Terms & Conditions, and more
• Download and view the “Grow Your Business with the New Mobility Competency Benefits” presentation presented by Ajoy Krishnamoorthy at WPC11
• Access the Windows Phone Sales and Marketing kit for partners
• Check out all of the Windows Phone information and resources on the Windows Phone page on the Microsoft Partner Network portal

Oh, and since we’re talking about Windows Phone, apps, and Microsoft partners, do you have the Microsoft Partner Info mobile app on your phone yet?

Did you find this information helpful? If so, you may want to make sure you are utilizing all of the areas I share information online, such as: my Facebook page, my Twitter account, my Linkedin account, and my blog. Plus, you can now get all of the latest Microsoft Partner Information right on your phone!

Thank you and have a wonderful day,

Eric Ligman – Follow me on TWITTER, LinkedIn, and RSS and see “What I’m thinking”
Director, Worldwide Partner Experience
Microsoft Corporation
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights