Why Is Nokia Making This Investment?

But China has drawn Nokia’s primary focus, and that of Apple as well. The iPhone maker has predicted that its sales will see the biggest growth in that country in the next few years. For Nokia, that presents a problem. The company traditionally “counted developing markets as a key factor in its baseline ‘dumbphone‘ success,” reported SlashGear. Now, the popularity of Android-powered devices and the iPhone has caused Nokia’s legacy business to shrink faster than expected. China has become a country for Nokia to launch its best efforts to compete with the largest and most popular manufactures. That is what prompted Nokia’s new investment fund.

The venture capital unit has been in operation since 2005, and owns a small mobile industry portfolio that includes semiconductors, embedded software, and services. Nokia invested $250 million in the third fund the manufacturer has set up. Most recently, Nokia Growth Partners invested $8 million in the Swedish video streaming service Voddler and $10.7 million in Luminate, a California-based company that makes interactive imaging software.

Nokia sees the division as a means to expand its business. “Over the past decade, Nokia has developed an innovative venturing strategy,” Timo Ihamuotila, the company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, said in a statement. “Our ongoing commitment to Nokia Growth Partners reinforces Nokia’s support for a vibrant mobile ecosystem and our determination to collaborate with industry innovators to build great mobile products.”

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