Nokia

Nokia is a Finnish multinational telecommunications and information technology company headquartered in Espoo. Its origins reach back to 1865, when mining engineer Fredrik Idestam established a wood-pulp mill in the Tampere region. The business later took the Nokia name from a second mill near the town of Nokia and gradually expanded beyond paper production into electricity, rubber, cables, electronics, computers, televisions, and telecommunications. The modern Nokia was created in 1967 through the merger of Nokia Ab, Finnish Rubber Works, and Finnish Cable Works. During the 1970s and 1980s, the company pursued a broad industrial strategy, selling products that included cable, rubber goods, televisions, computers, military communications equipment, radio systems, and telephone exchanges. It also developed an important relationship with the Soviet market. Under chief executive Kari Kairamo, Nokia made numerous acquisitions and became a diversified European electronics group, but the strategy left it exposed when Finland entered a severe recession and Soviet trade collapsed at the beginning of the 1990s. Chief executive Jorma Ollila redirected Nokia toward telecommunications and mobile communications. The company’s Mobira business, formed with Salora in 1979, became the foundation of its mobile-phone operation. Nokia participated in the development and deployment of GSM, 3G, and LTE technologies, and Nokia equipment was used for the first GSM call in 1991. The Nokia 1011, introduced in 1992, was the first commercially available GSM handset. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Nokia became the world’s largest mobile-phone vendor, helped by products such as the Nokia 5110, 3210, 3310, Communicator devices, and later the Nseries smartphones. Its colorful designs, interchangeable covers, strong battery life, user-friendly software, and global distribution made the brand exceptionally visible and helped make Nokia a source of national pride in Finland. Nokia also invested in mobile software and imaging. It helped establish Symbian Ltd. and later became its largest shareholder and full owner. Devices such as the 9210 Communicator, 7650, N95, N8, and 808 PureView demonstrated the company’s emphasis on mobile photography, multimedia, and converged computing. However, Nokia was slow to respond to the iPhone-led shift toward touchscreen smartphones and application ecosystems. Its adoption of Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform did not restore its former position, and the company’s handset market share declined sharply. In 2014, Microsoft acquired Nokia’s Devices & Services handset business. Nokia retained its network, technology-development, and licensing activities and subsequently concentrated on telecommunications infrastructure. It sold the HERE mapping business, acquired Alcatel-Lucent in 2016, and incorporated Bell Labs into its research organization. The Nokia brand returned to mobile phones and smartphones through a licensing arrangement with HMD Global, but Nokia Corporation itself is principally a provider of mobile, fixed, and cloud-network technologies, software, services, optical and IP networking, private wireless solutions, and patent licensing. It remains publicly listed in Helsinki and New York and operates across international communications markets.

Nokia began in 1865 as a pulp and paper enterprise founded by Fredrik Idestam near Tampere. A second mill was established near Nokia, and the company adopted the Nokia name in 1871 after Idestam and Leo Mechelin formed Nokia Ab. Mechelin later expanded the business into electricity generation. Separately, Finnish Rubber Works and Finnish Cable Works developed businesses near the same locality. These companies came under common control and merged in 1967 to form Nokia Corporation. The post-merger company was highly diversified. Its activities included forestry, rubber, cables, electronics, chemicals, televisions, computers, telephone exchanges, and military communications. Nokia entered mobile radio through a 1979 joint venture with Salora called Mobira. Mobira launched the Nordic Mobile Telephone service in 1981 and the Mobira Senator car phone in 1982. Nokia acquired Mobira in 1984 and continued developing portable cellular products. During the same period it acquired Salora, Luxor, Oceanic, Schaub-Lorenz, and Ericsson’s information-systems business, becoming a major European electronics manufacturer. The diversification strategy became difficult to sustain after the Finnish recession and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Nokia sold or separated several non-core activities, including its computer division and tire business. Under Jorma Ollila, appointed chief executive in 1992, the company concentrated on telecommunications. Nokia invested heavily in GSM and later mobile standards, infrastructure, and handsets. The first GSM call on a Nokia-built network took place in Finland in 1991, and the Nokia 1011 entered the market in 1992. By 1998 Nokia had become the world’s largest mobile-phone vendor. The company’s peak mobile era extended into the 2000s. Its mainstream phones, communicators, camera phones, and Nseries smartphones gave it a broad international customer base. Nokia helped develop Symbian and used the operating system across many smartphones. It also pursued mobile gaming, imaging, music, navigation, and enterprise communication. The N95, N8, and 808 PureView illustrated its hardware and camera strengths. The arrival of the iPhone in 2007 and the rapid growth of Android changed the competitive basis of the market. Nokia’s software ecosystem and touchscreen response were widely regarded as insufficiently competitive. In 2011 the company chose Windows Phone through a strategic partnership with Microsoft, but Lumia sales did not reverse the decline. Microsoft purchased the Devices & Services operation in 2014. After the handset transaction, Nokia returned to its historical communications focus. It sold HERE, invested in network infrastructure and software, and acquired Alcatel-Lucent in 2016. The acquisition expanded Nokia’s fixed, mobile, IP, optical, and services businesses and brought Bell Labs into the group. Nokia also experimented with digital health and virtual reality, although these initiatives did not become its central business. HMD Global separately revived Nokia-branded consumer devices under license. Nokia’s current identity is centered on telecommunications networks, cloud and network services, private wireless, optical and IP technologies, research, standards, and patent licensing. The company continues to serve operators, governments, enterprises, and industrial customers worldwide while maintaining public listings in Finland and the United States.

1. 2023Corporate brand refresh

   Nokia introduced a new visual identity intended to emphasize its transformation into a business-to-business technology company.

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2. 2016Alcatel-Lucent acquisition completed

   Nokia completed the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent and expanded its network infrastructure and research capabilities.

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3. 2014Handset business sold to Microsoft

   Microsoft acquired Nokia’s Devices & Services operation.

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4. 2011Windows Phone strategy announced

   Nokia and Microsoft entered a strategic smartphone-platform partnership.

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5. 2001Symbian Communicator era begins

   The Nokia 9210 Communicator became an important early Symbian smartphone.

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6. 1998Largest mobile-phone vendor

   Nokia overtook Motorola to become the world’s leading mobile-phone vendor.

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7. 1992Nokia 1011 introduced

   Nokia launched the first commercially available GSM mobile phone.

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8. 1991First GSM call on a Nokia network

   The first GSM call was made in Finland using Nokia network equipment.

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9. 1981NMT mobile service launched

   Mobira introduced equipment for the Nordic Mobile Telephone network, an early international cellular system.

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10. 1979Mobira joint venture established

    Nokia and Salora created Mobira, the foundation of Nokia’s mobile-phone business.

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11. 1967Nokia Corporation created

    Nokia, Finnish Rubber Works, and Finnish Cable Works merged into one corporation.

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12. 1871Nokia Ab formed

    Idestam and Leo Mechelin formed Nokia Ab and named it after the locality of the second mill.

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13. 1865First pulp mill established

    Fredrik Idestam founded the pulp mill that became the starting point of Nokia’s corporate history.

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A global communications-technology provider combining telecommunications infrastructure, network software, research, standards expertise, and intellectual-property licensing.

• Nokia mobile phonesMobile phones1982

  Nokia’s classic mobile-phone portfolio ranged from simple voice-and-text handsets to feature phones with cameras, music, games, messaging, and internet access. Models such as the 5110, 3210, 3310, and 1100 became globally recognizable for durability, long battery life, accessible pricing, and industrial design. Nokia Corporation sold its handset business to Microsoft in 2014; later Nokia-branded consumer devices were developed by licensee HMD Global.

• Nokia CommunicatorSmartphones1996

  The Communicator family combined cellular telephony with a wide physical keyboard, larger display, messaging, personal-information management, and business applications. The 9210 Communicator, introduced in 2001, was an early Symbian-based smartphone and reflected Nokia’s long-standing interest in converged mobile computing.

• Nokia NseriesSmartphones2005

  Nseries devices were Nokia’s flagship multimedia smartphones in the mid-2000s. The range emphasized cameras, music, video, connectivity, navigation, and third-party applications. The N95 became particularly influential because it combined advanced imaging, GPS, wireless connectivity, and multimedia functions in one handset.

• Nokia LumiaSmartphones2011

  Lumia was Nokia’s principal Windows Phone smartphone family, developed during the company’s partnership with Microsoft. Devices such as the Lumia 920 emphasized camera technology, wireless charging, distinctive industrial design, and integration with Microsoft services. The line ended as Nokia’s own handset business was transferred to Microsoft.

• Nokia AirScaleRadio access network2017

  AirScale is a Nokia radio-access and baseband platform designed for mobile operators deploying current and next-generation cellular networks. It supports scalable network capacity, multiple radio technologies, cloud-oriented architectures, and 5G use cases. The platform is part of Nokia’s contemporary operator-infrastructure portfolio.

• Nokia 5G network solutionsTelecommunications infrastructure2018

  Nokia supplies 5G radio access, core-network, transport, automation, analytics, and related services to communications operators and enterprise customers. These offerings support enhanced mobile broadband, industrial connectivity, private wireless deployments, and network modernization.

• Nokia Bell LabsResearch and intellectual property2016

  Bell Labs became part of Nokia through the Alcatel-Lucent acquisition. It conducts research in communications, networking, computing, wireless technologies, and related fields, contributing to standards, patents, and long-term technology development.

• 2023Nokia brand refresh

  Global

  Nokia introduced a redesigned logo and corporate identity to communicate a shift from a consumer-handset image toward business-to-business networking and technology.

  Outcome. The refresh clarified the company’s post-handset positioning while retaining the Nokia name.

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• 2016Acquire Alcatel-LucentM&A

  Nokia sought greater scale and a broader portfolio in network equipment after exiting its own handset manufacturing business.

  What changed. Nokia acquired Alcatel-Lucent, including its fixed-network, mobile-network, IP, optical, services, and Bell Labs activities.

  Aftermath. The transaction strengthened Nokia’s position as a full-service telecommunications infrastructure supplier.

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• 2014Sell Devices & Services to MicrosoftM&A

  Nokia’s mobile-phone business had suffered a prolonged decline in the smartphone market despite its Windows Phone strategy.

  What changed. Nokia sold its Devices & Services operation to Microsoft and retained its network infrastructure, technology, and licensing activities.

  Aftermath. Nokia concentrated on telecommunications infrastructure and later expanded through the Alcatel-Lucent acquisition.

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• 2011Adopt Windows Phone as primary smartphone platformStrategy

  Nokia faced increasing competition from Apple’s iPhone and Android manufacturers and concluded that its existing smartphone software position was weakening.

  What changed. Nokia entered a strategic partnership with Microsoft and made Windows Phone the main platform for its smartphone strategy.

  Aftermath. The Lumia range produced notable devices but did not restore Nokia’s former smartphone market position; Microsoft later acquired the handset business.

  • Microsoft — Microsoft became Nokia’s principal smartphone-platform partner and later acquired the Devices & Services business.
  • Google — Android manufacturers continued expanding their share of the smartphone market.
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• 2025Nokia names Justin Hotard as chief executive

  Nokia announced Justin Hotard as successor to Pekka Lundmark in the chief executive role.

  Leadership change
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• 2025Nokia completes acquisition of Infinera

  The acquisition brought Infinera’s optical-networking capabilities into Nokia and was presented as a way to expand data-center, web-scale and high-capacity network opportunities.

  M&A
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• 2025Nokia announces CEO succession from Pekka Lundmark to Justin Hotard

  Nokia announced that Justin Hotard would succeed Pekka Lundmark as president and CEO, bringing experience in data centers, artificial intelligence and technology businesses.

  Leadership change
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• 2023Nokia announces organizational and branding changes

  Nokia introduced a refreshed corporate identity and reorganized its business presentation around network and technology activities.

  Campaign
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• 2023Nokia introduces a new corporate strategy and brand identity

  Nokia presented a redesigned logo and a B2B-focused strategy at MWC Barcelona, emphasizing networks, cloud, digitalization and future technologies rather than consumer handsets.

  Campaign
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• 2016Nokia acquires Alcatel-Lucent

  Nokia completed its acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent, substantially expanding its telecommunications infrastructure portfolio and adding Bell Labs.

  M&A
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• 2016Nokia brand returns to mobile phones through HMD licensing

  HMD Global obtained rights to develop and market Nokia-branded mobile phones and tablets under a licensing arrangement.

  M&AProduct launch
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• 2014Microsoft acquires Nokia Devices & Services

  Microsoft completed the acquisition of Nokia’s mobile-phone and smart-device business, which became part of Microsoft Mobile.

  M&A
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• 2014Nokia handset and Devices & Services business sold to Microsoft

  The sale transferred Nokia’s Devices and Services business to Microsoft and marked the company’s decisive transition away from operating a mainstream handset business.

  M&A
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• 2011Nokia announces Microsoft handset partnership

  Nokia selected Microsoft Windows Phone as its principal smartphone platform in an effort to challenge Apple and Android.

  Other
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• 2011Nokia withdraws from Japan’s handset market

  Nokia ended its direct handset business in Japan after struggling to compete in a rapidly changing smartphone market.

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• 1998Nokia becomes the world's leading mobile-phone vendor

  Nokia overtook Motorola as the largest mobile-phone brand during the expansion of GSM and mass-market mobile communications.

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1. Nokia
2. Nokia official leadership
3. Nokia refreshes brand identity
4. Nokia completes acquisition of Infinera
5. Nokia announces CEO succession from Pekka Lundmark to Justin Hotard
6. Nokia introduces a new corporate strategy and brand identity
7. Nokia handset and Devices & Services business sold to Microsoft
8. Nokia withdraws from Japan’s handset market