PlayReady technology allows people to share protected pieces of content — like music, games or videos — between mobile phones, PCs and other devices.

As part of the agreement, Nokia and Microsoft will also collaborate on expanding and simplifying ways for users to access and move digital content using mobile devices.

Nokia said it anticipates the first devices using the Microsoft DRM technology will be shipping by early next year.

Nokia and Microsoft announced their first collaboration in mobile entertainment in February 2005, at the 3GSM World Congress in Cannes, France, a deal that focused on Windows Media player being ported on to Nokia phones.

That deal raised some eyebrows since the two companies are seen as major competitors in the mobile phone software sector.

"People are increasingly using their mobile devices for enjoying digital content, such as music, games, videos and photos," said Ilkka Raiskinen, senior vice president of Multimedia Experiences at Nokia. "By adding support for Microsoft PlayReady technology, we are enabling service providers to offer a wide range of content and create truly compelling experiences across mobile devices, personal computers and online services."

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EDIG

• 1993 – Unveiled the first digital voice recorder with removable flash memory, powered by e.Digital’s then newly developed MicroOS®.

• 1996 – Produced the first interface for a digital voice recorder for downloading recordings to, and managing them on, the PC.

• 1997 – Began development on multi-codec, multi-digital rights management digital music technology platform using an augmented MicroOS®.