Nokia and the rest of the Symbian ecosystem actually led the market by a long stretch, just a short while ago. If they hadn't hired a former Microsoft exec to lead the company, and perhaps with a bit of luck, Nokia/Siemens/etc would have been that alternative. But that is another discussion.

I 100% disagree, and that's as someone who was both a fan of Nokia and even of Windows Phone.

And even if I agreed, they did hire that former MS exec. So they wouldn't have been that alternative, because in no universe would Apple or Google put Stephen Elop in charge of iPhone/Android, and in this universe, Nokia would.

> The solution is simple: build a business environment that would allow a home-grown alternative to have developed over the last 40 years.

Time travel is a simple and elegant solution to many problems. (Ignoring unintended consequences at least.)

True, but we always have the opportunity to eliminate a similar need for time travel 40 years from now.

I agree, and I'm not sure whether the reason it hasn't happened is that they can't do it, or they won't do it.

These are not mutually exclusive.