Nokia to acquire leading consumer email and instant messaging provider OZ Communications
Service enables out-of-the-box access to popular consumer email and IM
Espoo, Finland and Montreal, Canada - Nokia and OZ Communications today announced that Nokia is to acquire OZ, a privately held company with approximately 220 employees and headquartered in Montreal, Canada. OZ, the leading consumer mobile messaging solution provider, delivers access to popular instant messaging and email services on consumer mobile devices.
"With OZ, Nokia is renewing its mission of Connecting People by enabling consumers to easily connect and communicate using their favorite Internet communities," said Niklas Savander, Head of Nokia Services & Software. "OZ's team and technology will help Nokia to address the fast growing consumer messaging market."
By acquiring OZ, Nokia will enable easy-to-use, fast access to leading instant messaging and email services, including AOL®, Gmail, ICQ®, Windows Live(TM) Hotmail, Windows Live(TM) Messenger and Yahoo!®. With more than 5.5 million monthly paid users, OZ's solutions have been deployed by leading mobile operators on a wide array of mobile device platforms.
"OZ has been working closely with Nokia since 2003 - joining forces at this point is a natural extension of our partnership," said Jim Knapik, President and CEO of OZ. "We are excited about taking OZ's solutions to consumers worldwide by leveraging Nokia's devices and distribution scale."
The expertise and technology Nokia acquires through OZ is complementary to Nokia's existing portfolio of messaging solutions and will provide a complete portfolio of mobile messaging solutions for Series 40 and S60 devices. Nokia will continue to work closely with OZ's existing original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and mobile operator customers.
The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter 2008. After the closing, OZ will become part of Nokia's Services & Software operative unit.
About OZ
OZ empowers consumers to stay connected with the most popular messaging and Internet services, including IM, email and online communities, through their mobile phones. Working with the leading mobile operators, handset manufacturers, portals and online communities, OZ delivers innovative and standards-based solutions that provide rich and fully integrated messaging experiences on millions of mobile devices.
Leading companies that are Powered by OZ(TM) include: 3 Scandinavia, Alcatel Lucent, Alltel, AOL®, Bell Mobility, Boost Mobile, AT&T, Dobson, HTC, ICQ, LG, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia, Orange France Telecom, Palm, Pantech & Curitel, Rogers Wireless, Samsung, SonyEricsson, Sprint Nextel, TCL & Alcatel Mobile Phones, TDC, Telefónica Móviles España, Telenor Group, TeliaSonera, Telus Mobility, T-Mobile USA®,T-Mobile International, UTStarcomm, Verizon Wireless, Virgin Mobile USA and Yahoo! ®.
OZ is a privately held company headquartered in Montreal, Canada, with regional offices in the United States, Europe and India. For more information, visit the OZ website at www.oz.com.
About Nokia
Nokia is the world leader in mobility, driving the transformation and growth of the converging Internet and communications industries. We make a wide range of mobile devices with services and software that enable people to experience music, navigation, video, television, imaging, games, business mobility and more. Developing and growing our offering of consumer Internet services, as well as our enterprise solutions and software, is a key area of focus. We also provide equipment, solutions and services for communications networks through Nokia Siemens Networks.
It should be noted that certain statements herein which are not historical facts, including, without limitation, those regarding: A) the timing of product, services and solution deliveries; B) our ability to develop, implement and commercialize new products, services, solutions and technologies; C) expectations regarding market growth, developments and structural changes; D) expectations regarding our mobile device volume growth, market share, prices and margins; E) expectations and targets for our results of operations; F) the outcome of pending and threatened litigation; G) expectations regarding the successful completion of contemplated acquisitions on a timely basis and our ability to achieve the set targets upon the completion of such acquisitions; and H) statements preceded by \"believe,\" \"expect,\" \"anticipate,\" \"foresee,\" \"target,\" \"estimate,\" \"designed,\" \"plans,\" \"will\" or similar expressions are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's best assumptions and beliefs in light of the information currently available to it. Because they involve risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from the results that we currently expect. Factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: 1) competitiveness of our product, service and solutions portfolio; 2) the extent of the growth of the mobile communications industry and general economic conditions globally; 3) the growth and profitability of the new market segments that we target and our ability to successfully develop or acquire and market products, services and solutions in those segments; 4) our ability to successfully manage costs; 5) the intensity of competition in the mobile communications industry and our ability to maintain or improve our market position or respond successfully to changes in the competitive landscape; 6) the impact of changes in technology and our ability to develop or otherwise acquire complex technologies as required by the market, with full rights needed to use; 7) timely and successful commercialization of complex technologies as new advanced products, services and solutions; 8) our ability to protect the complex technologies, which we or others develop or that we license, from claims that we have infringed third parties' intellectual property rights, as well as our unrestricted use on commercially acceptable terms of certain technologies in our products, services and solution offerings; 9) our ability to protect numerous Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks patented, standardized or proprietary technologies from third-party infringement or actions to invalidate the intellectual property rights of these technologies; 10) Nokia Siemens Networks' ability to achieve the expected benefits and synergies from its formation to the extent and within the time period anticipated and to successfully integrate its operations, personnel and supporting activities; 11) whether, as a result of investigations into alleged violations of law by some current or former employees of Siemens AG (\"Siemens\"), government authorities or others take further actions against Siemens and/or its employees that may involve and affect the carrier-related assets and employees transferred by Siemens to Nokia Siemens Networks, or there may be undetected additional violations that may have occurred prior to the transfer, or ongoing violations that may have occurred after the transfer, of such assets and employees that could result in additional actions by government authorities; 12) any impairment of Nokia Siemens Networks customer relationships resulting from the ongoing government investigations involving the Siemens carrier-related operations transferred to Nokia Siemens Networks; 13) occurrence of any actual or even alleged defects or other quality issues in our products, services and solutions; 14) our ability to manage efficiently our manufacturing and logistics, as well as to ensure the quality, safety, security and timely delivery of our products, services and solutions; 15) inventory management risks resulting from shifts in market demand; 16) our ability to source sufficient amounts of fully functional components and sub-assemblies without interruption and at acceptable prices; 17) any disruption to information technology systems and networks that our operations rely on; 18) developments under large, multi-year contracts or in relation to major customers; 19) economic or political turmoil in emerging market countries where we do business; 20) our success in collaboration arrangements relating to development of technologies or new products, services and solutions; 21) the success, financial condition and performance of our collaboration partners, suppliers and customers; 22) exchange rate fluctuations, including, in particular, fluctuations between the euro, which is our reporting currency, and the US dollar, the Chinese yuan, the UK pound sterling and the Japanese yen, as well as certain other currencies; 23) the management of our customer financing exposure; 24) allegations of possible health risks from electromagnetic fields generated by base stations and mobile devices and lawsuits related to them, regardless of merit; 25) unfavorable outcome of litigations; 26) our ability to recruit, retain and develop appropriately skilled employees; 27) the impact of changes in government policies, laws or regulations; and 28) our ability to effectively and smoothly implement our new organizational structure; as well as the risk factors specified on pages 10-25 of Nokia's annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2007 under \"Item 3.D Risk Factors.\" Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying assumptions subsequently proving to be incorrect could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Nokia does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.
Media Enquiries:
Nokia
Communications
Tel. +358 7180 34900
Email: press.services@nokia.com
Nokia
Communications, Americas
Media Relations
Tel: +1 914 473 9373
Email: communication.corp@nokia.com
OZ
Communications
Tel. +1 514 390 2906
Email: Michel.Besner@oz.com