Nokia stock buoyant on announcement of new music & games portal and N81 handset

Ovi portal and new music handsets seen as challenge to Apple

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Nokia, the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phone handsets, is preparing to take on Apple in its own backyard, in the field of online music services designed to rival Apple's iTunes.
      In London on Wednesday, Nokia announced the launch of a new portal, which will include a Nokia Music Store and N-Gage gaming services. The company further showcased a new touch-screen phone, the N81, which is seen as a potential challenger to Apple's own iPhone.
      The news was well received in the market, and Nokia's share price was up by 4.6% in Helsinki on Wednesday.
     
Nokia's new portal, which will allow for downloading of music, games, maps, and other online services, will be called Ovi (the word means "door" in Finnish), and the company intends to package in the platform both its own services and those of other providers.
      Anssi Vanjoki, the head of Nokia's multimedia business, commented on Wednesday that the shape of the new portal would depend to a great degree on the consumers, as it would seek to offer users what they want.
     
Nokia intends to launch its music sales in the European market already this year. The company is promising that it will offer tracks and albums from all the world's largest music producers at competitive prices. Thus far, only Apple's iTunes has been able to provide such a large body of material for users to download.
      Individual tracks will cost a euro and can be downloaded either via a computer or directly through the mobile or WiFi networks.
     
Nokia President and Chief Executive Officer Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo was also in London for the launch, and presented Ovi and other new Nokia services for consumers at the "Nokia: Go Play" event.
      Kallasvuo commented on the flagship Finnish company's plans as an Internet player: "The industry is converging towards Internet-driven experiences and Ovi represents Nokia's vision in combining the Internet and mobility. Nokia is the number one mobile device company in the world. Looking into the future, we will deliver great devices, combined with compelling experiences and services, to make it easy for people to unlock the potential of the Internet", he said.
     
The simultaneous announcement on Wednesday of a new high-end multimedia phone, the N81, is a further sign of Nokia's intentions to move in on the lucrative market won by Apple, as it will compete in the same segment as the American company's iPhone, set to be launched in Europe at the end of this year.
      Investors and market analysts apparently liked what they heard on Wednesday, and the Nokia share price climbed briskly, putting on nearly 5% to close at EUR 23.31, its highest price for nearly five years.
      The rise continued into Thursday, albeit at a slower pace, and at 12:00 the stock stood just under EUR 23.90. Wednesday's surge also pushed up the OMX Helsinki index, which gained 2.4% to close at 11345.81.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Nokia seeks 40% market share after posting high quarterly result (3.8.2007)

Links:
  Nokia: Go Play
  Nokia N-Series Phones
  OMX Helsinki: Nokia

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