Nokia to sideline Symbian for high-end smartphones?

 

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By Reuters

Posted on 26 Aug 2009 at 11:53

Nokia will revert to Linux in an attempt to rival Apple's iPhone in the smartphone market, according to industry sources.

Nokia will show its first high-end phone running on Maemo, a version of Linux, next week at the annual Nokia World event in Stuttgart, sources claim.

"It looks like Maemo, or at least a Linux derivative of some description, will play a key role for Nokia in high-end [products] over the next year or two," claims Neil Mawston from Strategy Analytics.

But analysts say it likely won't become clear before next year at the whether this will help Nokia achieve its aims.

It looks like Maemo, or at least a Linux derivative of some description, will play a key role for Nokia over the next year or two

Nokia's workhorse Symbian operating system controls half of the smartphone market volume - more than its rivals Apple, Research in Motion and Google put together.

Yet analysts said Linux-based products could have important advantages. "Maemo is clearly far more flexible than Symbian, so it's a better option for advanced devices using various display technologies and rapidly evolving user-interface software," says analyst Tero Kuittinen from MKM Partners.

A Nokia spokesman says the company doesn't comment on future phone launches.

Significance of smartphones

High-end products are important for Nokia because the company hasn't only lost market share in this segment, but its average selling prices have declined faster than the industry average.

Goldman Sachs expects Nokia's value share (a measure reflecting average prices as well as underlying market share) for phones costing more than $350 to decline to 13% this year.

"Maemo's got to be the best bet Nokia has in that battle." says eQ Bank analyst Jari Honko.

Nokia has already talked about its work with Linux-based systems. "Maemo is taking the desktop Linux environment and making it mobile," Kai Oistamo, the head of Nokia's key phone unit, said in a recent interview. "We have proven it really can be made, you can take desktop Linux and make it work on mobile."

Linux has had little success in cellphones so far but its role is increasing with Maemo and also with Google using it for the Android platform.

Nokia's bet on Maemo does not mean the firm would replace Symbian software - at the same time it is moving Symbian extensively into its cheaper phones, expanding its target market.