The headlines are abuzz with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s final play – buying Nokia’s phone business for $5 billion. But what remains of Nokia actually might be the more interesting piece of the deal.
The new, slimmer Nokia shifts away from being one of the most iconic consumer phone brands and becomes a top behind-the-scenes vendor of mobile telecom gear and services. Instead of slugging it out against the likes of Apple, Google and Samsung, it might be able to benefit from their booming sales.
Microsoft agreed to pay $5 billion for Nokia’s tiny but growing Lumia smartphone line along with a massive but shrinking portfolio of dumb phones.
The company will be a leading maker of the equipment mobile carriers need to provide fast Internet service. It also owns one of the most complete global mapping services, and thousands of patents critical to mobile phones.
