Here’s a nugget to chew on as you roll out of bed this morning. During “The Power of Applications” keynote today at Mobile World Congress , HTC CEO Peter Chou was just asked what his take was on the Microsoft / Nokia partnership . Of course, we’ve heard before that the company loves Android and WP7 equally, and it was certainly onboard from the get-to with the launch of the 7 Mozart , but it’s not often that one handset manufacturer comments on another. Contrary to popular belief, Peter seemed fairly positive on the deal, though he made sure to focus more on the software side rather than touching on Elop’s decision making skills. Here’s the quote in full: “They’re doing what they have to do. It won’t be easy, but they’re doing what they have to do. We are very committed to Windows Mobile, and we are one of their lead partners for Windows Phone 7. So we are positive, because this combination will surely make that ecosystem stronger. As a strong player [in this ecosystem], HTC will be a beneficiary from [their decision].” In other words, HTC’s pumped that WP7 now has more backing, which will in turn (hopefully) make its own Windows Phone 7 devices more marketable, attractive and desirable as the ecosystem grows stronger. Talk about looking on the bright side of things. HTC CEO Peter Chou on Microsoft / Nokia partnership: ‘it’ll make the ecosystem stronger’ originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 07:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink