Since Microsoft acquired Nokia back in 2014, the Nokia brand quickly disappeared from the shelves during the following year, starting with the Microsoft-branded Lumia 640 and 640 XL. And while Microsoft did release two Nokia-branded feature phones this year, the Redmond giant announced earlier in May the sale of its feature phone division to FIH Mobile Ltd., a subsidiary of Hon Hai/Foxconn Technology Group, and HMD Global, a Finnish company led by Arto Nummela, a previous Nokia senior executive.
At the time, HMD Global also announced that it had signed a strategic brand and intellectual property licensing agreement with Nokia to create a new portfolio of Nokia-branded phones and tablets that would be manufactured by FIH Mobile. Today, Nokia has officially announced that this strategic agreement is now effective, with the brand licensing agreement allowing HMD Global to release Nokia-branded feature phones, smartphones and tablets for the next ten years. (via The Verge)
Brad Rodrigues, interim president of Nokia Technologies, shared in the press release :
We’ve been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm shown around the world for the return of the Nokia brand to smartphones. The HMD Global team has the ambition, talent and resources to bring a new generation of Nokia branded phones to market, and we wish them every success. I’m sure our millions of Nokia fans will be excited to see their new products!
While Nokia’s press release doesn’t explicitly mention Android, a new “Phones” landing page has reappeared on Nokia’s website where you can read “We’re busy working on Nokia smartphones running Android.” However, this web page will be actually operated by HMD Global, which will also take care of the design, sales, marketing and distribution of these new Nokia-branded devices.
