Nokia is reportedly loosening its relationship with developers who are only working with its  Symbian OS platform, as the ailing smartphone maker shifts its focus to Series 40 and Windows Phone.

According to All About Symbian, the company is ending membership of its Developer Champion programme, intended to recognise partners with “outstanding expertise”, for those working only with the legacy OS.

Nokia is now either not renewing membership on expiry, or in some cases cutting short membership ahead of schedule.

It was noted that “the common factor among those affected by the move appears to be that their main focus is developing for Symbian OS,” with the Developer Champion effort continuing for those working with Nokia’s other technologies of choice.

The move is perhaps unsurprising due to Nokia’s shift away from Symbian OS as it moves forward, meaning developers working with this technology will not help it in its efforts to drive Windows Phone.

However, many of those affected are long-term Nokia supporters, meaning the move has created some bad feeling.