Nokia will stop selling smartphones powered by its Symbian OS platform, as well as feature phones using its Series 40 platform in the US market, following the launch of its first Windows Phone-powered devices in the country. The move means that it will have a limited exposure to the market, targeting only the subset of the smartphone customer base willing to buy a Windows Phone handset from the vendor. However, the move will not be too much of a change of operating model for the company – none of the websites of the “big four” operators currently feature a Nokia device.

In an interview with All Things D, Chris Webber, president of Nokia in the US market, said that “When we launch Windows Phones we will essentially be out of the Symbian business, the S40 business, etc…The reality is that if we are not successful with Windows Phone, it doesn’t matter what we do.” The company will also not launch its first (and possibly only) MeeGo powered device, the N9, in the country – this smartphone is seeing a limited global rollout.

Nokia has had a limited presence in the US market for some time. In its most recent reported quarter (Q2 2011), it said that it shipped 1.5 million units for North America as a whole, falling by 42 percent year-on-year from 2.6 million, and making up 1.7 percent of its global shipment volumes. This was by far the company’s smallest region: next up was Greater China, with 11.3 million shipments.

The company is currently offering a handful of devices direct to consumers via its website, with retailers such as BestBuy also offering some handsets. In line with the introduction of the Windows Phone devices, it will also focus its efforts on building up its presence through operator channels.

While AT&T has shown some support for Symbian OS in the past, this has not been evident among its smartphone portfolio, which is dominated by Apple’s iPhone, with the company also having a strong Android portfolio. The country’s other GSM/WCDMA operator, T-Mobile USA, was an Android early adopter, and offers a range of handsets using this OS. Earlier this year T-Mobile launched the Symbian-powered Astound handset (pictured), although All Things D said that Webber described sales of this unit as “disappointing.”

Nokia also ended its direct involvement in the CDMA handset market, working with OEM partners to deliver some fairly unimpressive Nokia-branded handsets as placeholders, limiting its presence with number two operator Verizon Wireless and number-three placed Sprint.