Around Europe this week, you may well have been able to hear the continent's mobile phone geeks shouting "told you so" at Nokia. The company was forced to admit disappointing results on Tuesday and, as today's FT reports (free today only) part of its problem can be traced to failing to spot a trend towards clamshell phones. I remember, two years ago, hearing Nokia's senior management haughtily dismiss questions on clamshell phones at a press conference in Helskini. "Europeans don't want clamshell phones," replied one executive, arms crossed, looking to close the discussion straight away. Alas, for Nokia, Europe's consumers dared to disagree.
Nokia, its sales falling 2% in the first quarter (against predictions of 3-7% growth), is coming round to the idea of the flip phone, and its long-promised 7200 model is a lovely, very stylish example that should hit the shops very soon. Other initiatives will help Nokia regain its cutting-edge image, like the Lifeblog software first reported here last month; a neat PC diary program which will run on new Series 60 phones to be launched this summer (but not, contrary to one report, on any phones around at the moment). And I'd still buy a Nokia ahead of any Motorola, or Microsoft Smartphone device, having bought examples of all over the years.
But Nokia's chief executive, Jorma Ollila, had to concede that his company's 38% market share of last year would fall this year. You have to wonder if Nokia's dominance of the handset business is coming to an end, especially as Sony Ericsson gets its act together in a very big way to start attacking on features, price and design.
