Shortly: The Finnish company HMD Global, owner of the Nokia brand, which has launched mobile phones with the iconic name in recent years, has announced that it will launch its own line of phones alongside the Nokia devices.
Jean-Francois Baril, Chairman and CEO of HMD Global, writes that the company is building its own HMD brand for mobile devices that will exist alongside Nokia phones. The brand will also be entering into collaborations with new partners that have yet to be announced.
“It has been a great journey as ‘HMD – the home of Nokia phones’ – an exclusive position we have held for the last six years,” said Baril. “Now we are ready for the next step in our journey – entering the market independently as a force to create a new world of telecommunications focused on the needs of consumers.”
It was in 2016 when HMD Global signed a licensing agreement with Microsoft that gave it exclusive use of the Nokia brand on mobile phones and tablets for the next decade. The company is owned by Terry Gou, the founder and former chairman of Foxconn, who is making another bid for the presidency of Taiwan.
The first Nokia-branded Android devices hit the market in 2017, with the famous Nokia 3310 re-entering the market along with many other budget and mid-range mobile phones. It sounds like this strategy won’t change with HMD Global’s own phone brand. Baril says the company will continue to “design for a more sustainable and affordable future.”
Baril added that HMD Global is the fastest-growing 5G smartphone maker and a leader in sustainability with its repairable devices.
Baril did not provide any details, such as when the HMD-branded phones might arrive. Nokiamob.net notes that recent EUIPO filings likely give an idea of how the brand will appear on the new HMD phones (above).
Baril also mentioned that HMD has established its own research and development, software development, sales and operations networks, which should contribute to the growth of the new brand.
Earlier this month, HMD Global announced that it was expanding its lineup of similar devices with two new feature phones (or dumb phones): the Nokia 130 and the Nokia 150. Both feature a feature long abandoned by most modern manufacturers : replaceable batteries.
With the Nokia licensing agreement set to end in 2026, HMD Global May Be prepared to lose the contract when the time comes and let your own phone line step in to fill the gap.