Microsoft had a tough year gaining traction in the mobile space, but the software giant is hoping that a new strategy centered on the release of Windows Mobile 6.5 will help it gain up to 60 percent market share, executives said Thursday.

“It was a tough year on succeeding in phones,” Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said at the company’s annual financial analyst meeting. “Mostly our own issues; and really driving our execution the right way at the right speed, [but] we’ve readjusted some of our plans.”

Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division, provided some more color on what those plans entail, including: the inclusion of Windows Mobile on a broader selection of phones; a shift from a business to consumer focus; cloud services; building up the Windows Phone brand; and building better relationships with hardware manufacturers.

“I still very much believe in the opportunity to be a for-profit software-only player in the phone business,” Ballmer said. “I think that’s the winning approach. I think it’s the right niche. I think it is the right way to get 50–60 percent kind of market share, maybe the only way.”

Windows Mobile 6.5 is set to debut in October. Microsoft first unveiled the new mobile OS, which is designed to make touch-screen phones easier to use and improve Windows phones’ Web-browsing skills, in February at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

When it does debut, Bach said, the OS will have a consumer-friendly edge.

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