One of the smartphone industry's least-successful relationships is about to end: Asustek Computer will not renew its dual-brand partnership contract with Garmin, according to Digitimes. The two-year agreement will instead be allowed to expire as it was meant to in January of 2011.

The decision was made because Asus was frustrated it could not develop its own brand without having to heed to Garmin's demands. Asus wanted to break away from location-based handsets and navigation-focused devices, but obviously Garmin wasn't fond of the idea given its roots.

The two companies announced their plans to work in partnership back in February 2008. Production delays, poor software development, and indecisiveness when it came to picking a solid mobile OS to adopt all lead to a disappointing launch for the much-anticipated Garmin-Asus nuvifone.

Starting next year, Asus will operate its handset business alone: the company is still expected to continue making GPS-enabled smartphones under the Asus brand with Garmin providing navigation and mapping software. Garmin, meanwhile, will be able to spread its services to a wider range of devices and companies. Prior to the deal, Garmin also supplied Sony Ericsson and LG.