mobileu.co.uk

Nokia struggles to keep up in smartphone market

Nokia appears to be struggling to keep up with its big name rivals such as Apple and Samsung as its latest financial figures reveal a loss for the third quarter of the year.

The data showed that net sales totalled €8.98 billion, which is a 13 per cent drop year-on-year. It also made a group operating loss of €71 million.

However, the market is holding off judgement due to the impending release of the Windows Phone device. Nokia has previously delivered smartphones powered by Symbian and MeeGo operating systems, but later this month it will unveil its new Windows-powered devices, following a collaboration with Microsoft.

The firm's chief executive Stephen Elop commented, “I am encouraged by the progress we made during the third quarter, while noting that there are still many important steps ahead in our journey of transformation.”

He added that the firm will continue to focus on consistent progress in order to move through the transformation to Windows and deliver “superior results”.

Despite the relatively large drop, the firm saw just a three per cent dip in the number of devices it shipped year-on-year. And, the number of handsets was actually up 20 per cent of the amount shipped in the second quarter of 2011.