Nokia makes strong profit in year of ‘first steps’ after Microsoft sale
Nokia had a good year after selling off its phones business, making a better-than-expected net profit of €443 million (roughly $505 million, £330 million, or AU$637 million) in 2014.
It’s too early to tell how the company’s return to hardware with the N1 tablet is going, but one expert believes the tablet is “just a first step” in what is “an exciting time for Nokia” as it transforms its business.
Finnish company Nokia has long been best known for its phones, but it also produces network equipment and mapping data, which is licensed to other companies under the Here brand. Having sold the part of the business that makes phones to Microsoft last April, it’s those other parts of the business that continue, reporting their annual financial results today.
The Nokia Networks unit did well on the back of improved sales in North America, particularly thanks to higher-margin 4G equipment. And it was a strong year for Here, Nokia’s navigation and mapping business. This division saw a 15 percent growth in net sales year-on-year, due to increased sales in the automotive space and licensing arrangements with Microsoft.
Nokia conceded this was offset by declines in the personal navigation device market — a category of products that has seen sales fall across the board. But Here is in a good position: it’s both a B2B proposition, licensing its data to other companies, and a customer-facing proposition, including an Android app.
