Just months ago, we said our nostalgic goodbyes to Nokia, marking the end of the company that was a major part of consumer technology in the 90s. However, latest reports suggest that maybe Nokia is not yet ready to close the curtains. According to Reuters, Nokia is already thinking about how to revive its brand name in consumer markets just months after the acquisition. Also Read - Nokia 3.4 at Rs 11,999: A look at its competition in the budget smartphone segment
Also Read - Nokia 3.4 review: Pretty design but disappointing elsewhereNokia’s chief executive Rajeev Suri when asked about rumours that the networks equipment maker was looking to re-enter the handset market, “I think you can expect our brand will return to the consumer world.” Also Read - Nokia 3.4 in pictures: Nordic design, clean Android One experience, and more at Rs 11,999
However, revival of the handset business seems bleak. Suri said that it will look to licensing the brand name to other firms. “We see brand licensing as an opportunity. But I would say it is more of a long-term opportunity,” he said. The company is looking for potential deals where other makers of consumer electronics might pay Nokia to use its brand on their products.
No deal is imminent but the Nokia brand could eventually appear on a range of electronics, not necessarily phones. “This is not a sentimentality thing,” Suri said.
Nokia sold off its former flagship mobile phones business to Microsoft for $7.2 billion and the acquisition was successfully completed in April. Microsoft this week dropped the Nokia name on its latest Lumia 535 smartphone finally marking the end of Nokia’s mobile business.