FOCUS-Nokia Internet phone ignites shares
By Roland Moller
HELSINKI, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Shares in Finnish telecom equipment maker Nokia were boosted on Tuesday by the company's launch of a new mobile phone with Internet access.
Analysts said the launch of 7110 model reinforced the company's top market position, although French rival Alcatel also said it would start selling a GSM mobile phone offering Internet access from March 26.
At 1308 GMT, Nokia traded at 126.50, up 5.5 percent on Monday's close, as investors saw the new phone tightening Nokia's grip on the mobile phone market.
Earlier this year some analysts said Swedish Ericsson's new models might move it ahead, but the prospect of a Nokia Internet phone arriving in the second quarter was seen changing views.
''Ericsson's new phone can withstand the rain, but Nokia's will tell you where it is raining,'' said analyst Petri Korpineva, analyst at Leonia bank.
He was referring to Ericsson's new R250 PRO model, which is water, dust, and shock resistant, launched on Monday.
Korpineva said there had been some expectations for a launch, but it came sooner than expected. ''This is absolutely positive news.''
Nokia said the 7110 series was its first model to give Internet access using the wireless application protocol (WAP) in mobile media mode.
The company had earlier sold small quantities of its Communicator, which combined a palmtop with a mobile phone and had Internet functions, but it never reached the mass market.
It said the new model's market segment would make up 10 to 15 percent of total demand for mobile phones next year, and that it expected to be the market leader.
The 141-gramme dual band 7110 model has a display 80 percent bigger than that of its 6110 series, a dictionary-linked keypad anticipating which words the user is typing, talk-time of up to four hours 30 minutes, plus many more features.
''By the year 2000, this type of phone will sell in numbers exceeding portable computers,'' Anssi Vanjoki, head of Nokia Mobile Phones in Europe and Africa, said in Cannes when the product was launched.
08:49 02-23-99 |
