Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo at the Nokia Ann...
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Nokia Corporation
Stock exchange release
April 23, 2009 at 15.40 (CET+1)
Helsinki, Finland - Today at its Annual General Meeting, Nokia
President and CEO, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo outlined the company's future
strategy. "Nokia is fundamentally changing its business model to
transform both the company and the industry. While we continue to
compete with the traditional mobile device manufacturers, we also are
dealing with new competitors entering the market from the PC and
Internet industries," he said.
"To succeed in this new environment, we need to offer consumers
irresistible solutions that improve their lives. During 2008, we have
taken many steps to ensure we maintain our strong leading position in
the device business, while increasing our focus on solutions-centric
business models. We have focused our services investments on five
primary categories: maps, music, messaging, media and games. These
are the areas where the biggest opportunities lie."
Mr. Kallasvuo said the company believes that Nokia's strategy of
combining unique services with high- quality devices will increase
customer retention and add value. He said that more consumers are not
only choosing Nokia, but are also remaining as Nokia customers.
"Our estimated consumer retention rate of around 55 percent is almost
twice the rate of our global competitors," Kallasvuo said, and he
noted that Nokia customer retention has consistently increased every
quarter since the beginning of 2007. "This is a substantial
achievement and shows we have made significant progress with our
solutions approach during the past year."
During the address, Mr. Kallasvuo also highlighted the Nokia 5800
Xpress Music devices as a great success: "Consumer response has been
well beyond expectations, and it has the potential to become our most
successful device ever. We estimate that this smartphone alone
accounts for around 20 per cent of all touch screen devices sold
worldwide. It offers unique value for those who want to experience
their music on the move, particularly when combined with our
innovative Comes With Music service."
Mr. Kallasvuo went on to emphasize that Nokia sees further
opportunities as consumers trade down to less expensive devices,
particularly in a time of recession. "The Symbian operating system is
the world's most widely used software platform for advanced mobile
phones." According to Mr. Kallasvuo, with the help of Symbian, Nokia
plans to broaden the definition of the smartphone, by expanding
smartphone features into the mid-range, and into new product
categories.
"We believe that mobile computing should not be limited only to
expensive, high-end devices. Expanding Symbian into lower price
points is the right thing to do. We see this as a tremendous
opportunity to increase efficiency, to get more scale for Symbian,
and gain market share."
He also said that success in the changing business environment would
require courage and a shift away from the conventional: "We cannot
expect to do it all alone. We have to work together with certain
competitors, new players and partners in new ways. We have to compete
and co-operate. We are working more closely with many other
companies, including operators and partners. We expect more such
partnerships to come."
Mr. Kallasvuo told the audience that Nokia has been continually
adapting to a changing environment and would continue this approach.
"We are scaling our operations accordingly and making sensible but
fundamental changes in the way we work. The results of our
cost-savings program are not giving us one-off savings for the short
term; these are long-term changes with long-term savings."
"Innovation in the mobile communications industry is certainly not
standing still. It is very clear we have to continue to invest in
our future, but at a more appropriate pace. Given the current
climate, we have to balance what is beneficial and sustainable for
Nokia's long-term future, while adjusting the speed at which we
operate."
Even though the global device market will contract this year for the
first time in many years, there is reason for optimism according to
Mr. Kallasvuo: "There is a lot of opportunity for the taking in our
industry. Mobile devices are becoming true mobile computers and
consumers increasingly are more willing to use them in new ways with
new services. "
About Nokia
Nokia is the world's number one manufacturer of mobile devices by
market share and a leader in the converging Internet and
communications industries. We make a wide range of devices for all
major consumer segments and offer Internet services that enable
people to experience music, maps, media, messaging and games. We also
provide comprehensive digital map information through NAVTEQ and
equipment, solutions and services for communications networks through
Nokia Siemens Networks.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
It should be noted that certain statements herein which are not
historical facts, including, without limitation, those regarding: A)
the timing of product, services and solution deliveries; B) our
ability to develop, implement and commercialize new products,
services, solutions and technologies; C) our ability to develop and
grow our consumer Internet services business; D) expectations
regarding market developments and structural changes; E) expectations
regarding our mobile device volumes, market share, prices and
margins; F) expectations and targets for our results of operations;
G) the outcome of pending and threatened litigation; H) expectations
regarding the successful completion of contemplated acquisitions on a
timely basis and our ability to achieve the set targets upon the
completion of such acquisitions; and I) statements preceded by
"believe," "expect," "anticipate," "foresee," "target," "estimate,"
"designed," "plans," "will" or similar expressions are
forward-looking statements. These statements are based on
management's best assumptions and beliefs in light of the information
currently available to it. Because they involve risks and
uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from the results
that we currently expect. Factors that could cause these differences
include, but are not limited to: 1) the deteriorating global economic
conditions and related financial crisis and their impact on us, our
customers and end-users of our products, services and solutions, our
suppliers and collaborative partners; 2) the development of the
mobile and fixed communications industry, as well as the growth and
profitability of the new market segments that we target and our
ability to successfully develop or acquire and market products,
services and solutions in those segments; 3) the intensity of
competition in the mobile and fixed communications industry and our
ability to maintain or improve our market position or respond
successfully to changes in the competitive landscape; 4)
competitiveness of our product, services and solutions portfolio; 5)
our ability to successfully manage costs; 6) exchange rate
fluctuations, including, in particular, fluctuations between the
euro, which is our reporting currency, and the US dollar, the
Japanese yen, the Chinese yuan and the UK pound sterling, as well as
certain other currencies; 7) the success, financial condition and
performance of our suppliers, collaboration partners and customers;
8) our ability to source sufficient amounts of fully functional
components, sub-assemblies, software and content without interruption
and at acceptable prices; 9) the impact of changes in technology and
our ability to develop or otherwise acquire and timely and
successfully commercialize complex technologies as required by the
market; 10) the occurrence of any actual or even alleged defects or
other quality, safety or security issues in our products, services
and solutions; 11) the impact of changes in government policies,
trade policies, laws or regulations or political turmoil in countries
where we do business; 12) our success in collaboration arrangements
with others relating to development of technologies or new products,
services and solutions; 13) our ability to manage efficiently our
manufacturing and logistics, as well as to ensure the quality,
safety, security and timely delivery of our products, services and
solutions; 14) inventory management risks resulting from shifts in
market demand; 15) our ability to protect the complex technologies,
which we or others develop or that we license, from claims that we
have infringed third parties' intellectual property rights, as well
as our unrestricted use on commercially acceptable terms of certain
technologies in our products, services and solutions; 16) our ability
to protect numerous Nokia, NAVTEQ and Nokia Siemens Networks
patented, standardized or proprietary technologies from third-party
infringement or actions to invalidate the intellectual property
rights of these technologies; 17) any disruption to information
technology systems and networks that our operations rely on; 18)
developments under large, multi-year contracts or in relation to
major customers; 19) the management of our customer financing
exposure; 20) our ability to retain, motivate, develop and recruit
appropriately skilled employees; 21) whether, as a result of
investigations into alleged violations of law by some former
employees of Siemens AG ("Siemens"), government authorities or others
take further actions against Siemens and/or its employees that may
involve and affect the carrier-related assets and employees
transferred by Siemens to Nokia Siemens Networks, or there may be
undetected additional violations that may have occurred prior to the
transfer, or violations that may have occurred after the transfer, of
such assets and employees that could result in additional actions by
government authorities; 22) any impairment of Nokia Siemens Networks
customer relationships resulting from the ongoing government
investigations involving the Siemens carrier-related operations
transferred to Nokia Siemens Networks; 23) unfavorable outcome of
litigations; 24) allegations of possible health risks from
electromagnetic fields generated by base stations and mobile devices
and lawsuits related to them, regardless of merit; as well as the
risk factors specified on pages 11-28 of Nokia's annual report on
Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2008 under Item 3D. "Risk
Factors." Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying
assumptions subsequently proving to be incorrect could cause actual
results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements. Nokia does not undertake any obligation to publicly
update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent
legally required.
Media Enquiries:
Nokia
Communications
Tel. +358 7180 34900
E-mail: press.services@nokia.com
Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo's speech at Nokia Annual General Meeting will be
available later today also at www.nokia.com/investor
www.nokia.com
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NOKIA
P.O. Box 226<br>FIN-00045 NOKIA GROUP Espoo
WKN: 870737;
ISIN: FI0009000681; Index: DJ STOXX Large 200, DJ STOXX 50;
Listed: Nordic list (Large Cap) in THE HELSINKI STOCK EXCHANGE;
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