Nokia held on through another quarter with no major new devices, but it didn’t come cheap. The Finnish handset maker lost $98.7 million on a 25% year-over-year decline in handset sales and continued losses at NAVTEQ and Nokia Siemens Networks.

Revenues were down 13%, smartphone sales dropped 39% and feature phone sales slid 13%. Nokia sold 106.6 million mobile devices during the quarter, nearly 90 million of which were basic candy bar phones and the like. Indeed, the one bright spot in Nokia’s earnings came from its Symbian-based mobile phones. The company sold 89.9 million mobile devices during the quarter, an 8% jump from the year prior and a 25% increase from the previous quarter.

While losses continue at NAVTEQ and Nokia Siemens Networks, they did move in the right direction. Nokia is widely expected to unveil its first Windows Phone-based smartphones next week at Nokia World in London.

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

The pain continues for Nokia Corp. (NOK). Device sales are down across the board and profits have fallen off a cliff, well into the red. Indeed, Nokia is bleeding red all over its balance sheet for the quarter.

The Finnish company shipped 88.5 million devices during the quarter, shedding 20% in volume from the year-ago period and 18% from the previous quarter. Over the past year, smartphone sales have slipped 34% to 16.7 million devices and feature phones have dropped 16% to 71.8 million units. Device volume is down to 2006 levels. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

SAN DIEGO — Until Nokia Corp. (NOK) releases some actual equipment running on Microsoft Corp.’s (MSFT) Windows Phone operating system, signaling a return to better days and some semblance of longevity in the smartphone space, the Finnish company is going to be on the defensive. President and CEO Stephen Elop has essentially been on the defensive ever since he announced plans to partner with Microsoft, and things were no different here at his keynote at Qualcomm Inc.’s (QCOM) Uplinq conference. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

Each and every jump from one network technology to another presents wireless infrastructure vendors with a chance for new business. And sure enough, changes are afoot in the infrastructure space again today as mobile operators make their climb to fourth-generation networks.

While recent newcomers are making significant wins outside the United States, it’s mostly the incumbents that are winning the biggest network contracts here in a country that has arguably become the early leader in 4G technology deployments.

LTE has presented telecom gear makers with a window of opportunity to shake up the space and see market shares slide every which way between competitors new and old. Read more

**As published at RCR Wireless News**

Nokia Corp. continues to buckle under the increasing might and will of its competitors in the smartphone space.

In a note to investors , the company downgraded the financial outlook for its devices and services division for the second (current) quarter and full year of 2010. The company said “multiple factors are negatively impacting Nokia’s business to a greater extent than previously expected.” While that may be true, it would be difficult to conclude that most of these “factors” have come as a surprise to the world’s largest manufacturer of cellphones. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

SANTA MONICA, Calif. – Kicking off a panel dedicated to video on smartphones at Digital Hollywood yesterday, The Nielsen Co.’s VP of mobile media presented some astonishing statistics that frame the intense battle that’s getting underway between Google Inc.’s Android operating system and Apple Inc.’s iPhone.

Citing fresh data that the research firm put together just in time for the event, Jerry Rocha said smartphones running on the Android operating systems are beating or tying with the iPhone in many use categories. Time will tell whether Android users will maintain their high use data services, but if the trend stays on track Apple might be outdone at its own game very soon.

Android users are outperforming iPhone users on location-based services and mobile video while both user groups are in a dead heat for mobile Internet use at an overall rate of 88%, Rocha said. Data services on the Android operating system has taken off in just the past couple quarters and is currently running at a year-over-year growth rate of 352%, he added. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

HOLLYWOOD, CALIF. – The late afternoon panel dedicated to mobile at the LA Games Conference didn’t get as deep as it surely could have, but there were at least a couple interesting debates that solidified the continuing uncertainty that surrounds the platform.

In an industry that’s built fortunes on console- and PC-based games, there’s an obvious disconnect between what successes are being achieved on mobile today and what can be made of the promising platform down the road.

Stephen Saiz, director of marketing in the digital publishing group at Disney Interactive Studios, said although the company is mentally prepared, it’s not physically prepared to keep up with how rapidly things are shifting in the space.” Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

LAS VEGAS –- In a meeting room on the show floor with less than 10 journalists on hand, Nokia Corp.’s VP of technology, David Rivas tried to make the case for the company’s technology roadmap, particularly with regards to its forthcoming Symbian^3 operating system.

At numerous times throughout the briefing, Rivas had little choice but to go on the defensive in the face of many questions expected to be asked of Nokia these days. Indeed, the informal gathering seemed to highlight the criticism facing Nokia by design while at the same time giving a technologist the opportunity to get into the weeds of Nokia’s thinking.

Going forward there will be no more S60, feature pack updates or anything of the fragmented sort, Rivas said. The OS brand is all Symbian now and Nokia has committed to an extremely aggressive OS update every six months. Following Nokia’s timeline, with the first Symbian^3 devices set to launch before July, Symbian^4 should be on hand by early next year. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

BARCELONA – Two heavyweights in their own right, Nokia and Intel this morning announced plans to merge their Linux-based software platforms for next-generation devices.

MeeGo, which merges Intel’s Moblin and Nokia’s Maemo platforms, the software is intended to support multiple hardware types across a host of market segments, ranging from mobile computers, netbooks and tablets to next-generation smartphones, connected TVs and in-vehicle systems.

The goal is to allow developers to write an application once and have it work immediately on a variety of devices and platforms and then sell through Nokia’s Ovi Store and Intel’s AppUp Center. Read more

I have serious commitment issues when it comes to my mobile phone. Early termination fees don’t scare me as much as a phone that’s just gotten plain old boring for me. And believe me, I always find a way out.

It might be dropped calls, crap voice quality and pathetic download speeds that drive me to the edge one time. The next time, I might just get sick of the color or maybe I don’t like the way it looks at me or fits in my pocket. Either way, I’m bound to jump and run — it’s just a matter of when. Materialistic? Sure. Overindulgence? You bet.

Like any commitment-phobe, I’m all about multiples. Whether it’s the carrier(s) I do business with or the mobile device(s) I carry, I just can’t settle down and tie the knot with one or the other. I’m one of those types who has two phones usually. Although I try to keep them from knowing about each other — work and personal don’t always belong together — they inevitably cross paths. Read more