Nokia Scrambles To Stay Alive In Smartphone Platform
July 19, 2009 by CM · View Comments
Nokia struggling to stay alive in the smartphone platform is not a surprise. Anyone producing smartphones that does not have some type of a media outlet available to the smartphone will go the way of the dinosaur (quickly). Nokia products particularly their smartphone line is not as popular in the United States, but is throughout the world. But, they just lost some 8 billion in value due to the drop of their smartphone sales. I think they better copy the iTunes Store and quick or buy a competitor that is already lined up to take on the Apple iPhone. The short sighted business model of Nokia is a little surprising since the iPhone has been out for several years and the iTunes App Store for over a year. I guess in their pride they figured they could compete with the iPhone, smartphone to smartphone. That they may, but no media outlet for their smartphone platform is just plain dumb in this day and age. 07/19/09, CM
Nokia takes a dive as Apple gains ground in the phone race
Shares of Nokia tumbled this week, as the world’s largest handset maker believes its market share will recede over the next year, while competitor Apple sees continued growth with the iPhone platform.
Analysts said that Nokia Oyj would not be able to keep up with Apple without an App Store-like alternative. As a result, Bloomberg said, Nokia’s stock took its biggest hit in five years, dropping 15 percent, or $8.6 billion in value.
Though Nokia isn’t as big a player in the U.S. as Apple, Research in Motion, or even Motorola, the global company commands a majority of the smartphone and cellphone market worldwide. Nokia estimated its smartphone market share was 41 percent for the second quarter of 2009, while the overall market share was 38 percent.
In 2005, Nokia held 62 percent of the smartphone market.
As Nokia loses some ground, Apple continues to lead the industry in year-over-year growth.
To address investor concerns, Nokia announced Thursday its response to the App Store: Symbian Horizon.
“We’re starting small and can only work with a limited number of apps initially,” the site reads, “so sign up now to be one of the first apps to make it big via Symbian Horizon.”
As Nokia struggles to retain its stature, a rumor emerged this week that the handset maker could buy rival manufacturer Palm. This as market watchers like Barron’s told investors it was time to dump their Nokia stock.
It appears Nokia is at a crossroads, and we’ll see what happens.
