PlayReady enables users to share protected content, including video and music, between mobile devices and PCs. Nokia’s S60, which competes with Microsoft Mobile, is widely used in Nokia’s mobile phones, as well as in smartphones from LG Electronics and Samsung. The first Nokia devices featuring PlayReady are expected to reach retail shelves sometime next year.

Microsoft and Nokia also said they would work on ways to simplify access to digital content on mobile devices.

The deal is in keeping with Nokia’s new focus, announced in June, on improving its software and services.