Microsoft and Telefonica team up to smash the Android/iOS duopoly

Spanish telecommunications giant Telefonica isn’t afraid to combat the leading smartphone platforms, Android and iOS.

The company has already partnered with Firefox to release its mobile Firefox OS, and now Telefonica is working together with Microsoft to give Windows Phone 8 a similar push in Europe and Latin America.

Telefonica announced an “enhanced marketing” effort with Microsoft this morning, a year-long effort (for now) where it will promote Windows Phone 8 in the U.K, Germany, Spain, Chile, Mexico, and Brazil (where the company is also debuting Firefox OS).

Specifically, the carrier says it’s “firmly committed to enhancing its commercial offering mobile devices to encourage the presence of additional mobile operating platforms as an alternative to the current duopoly of Android and iOS.”

Given Telefonica’s global reach, it makes sense for the company to promote platforms outside of iOS. The iPhone is typically too expensive for most consumers in Latin American countries, and Microsoft has also pushed the Windows Phone platform to work on lower-end devices. And while Android smartphones are cheap all over the world, it’s in Telefonica’s best interest to support multiple platforms.

For the most part, it sounds like Telefonica will advertise Windows Phone 8 much more over the next year, and it may also roll out a few deals around the platform. The company says it will also offer Microsoft’s cloud services, including Office 365 and SharePoint, as well as SkyDrive and Xbox services, to make Windows Phone more tempting.