Microsoft kicked off several interesting announcements at the Mobile World Congress (MWC). The company makes a big move to go global and announces a number of new partners who will be supporting Windows Phone.

In addition to existing partners — Nokia, Samsung, HTC and Huawei — Microsoft announced nine new Windows Phone hardware partners for the Windows Phone platform, Foxconn, Gionee, JSR, Karbonn, Lava (Xolo), Lenovo, LG, Longcheer and ZTE.

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Microsoft has partnered with seven of the top 10 global OEMs in addition to leading brands in China, India and Taiwan, representing more than 56 percent of the addressable market globally (IDC Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker, 2013).

Microsoft also announced details about the first major update for Windows 8.1. Which should be arriving in spring 2014, including power and search buttons on the start screen as well as a title bar at the top of modern apps. It will support for reduced memory and space requirements for hardware manufacturers and also a better support for non-touch devices.