Compulsive convergence
Nokia chief exec Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo revealed his company may expand into the laptop market in an interview on Finnish TV, reports Reuters.
Asked whether Nokia plans to start making laptops, he replied: "We are looking very actively also at this opportunity."
This isn't as surprising as it might initially seem; the convergence of the IT and telco channels accelerated last year as low power processors and mobile Internet came to the fore.
There is now a spectrum of form factors ranging from the smartphone to the laptop, including of course the netbook, that allow access to the Internet on the move and the futures of both the telco and PC industries are expected to lie in that direction.
PCs are increasingly sold bundled with mobile broadband deals and the next generation should all come with 3G connectivity pre-installed. If Nokia doesn't expand its product range to accommodate demand for the full spectrum of mobile internet devices it risks missing the boat in the same way it did when Apple launched the iPhone.
"We don't have to look even for five years from now to see that what we know as a cellphone and what we know as a PC are in many ways converging," said Kallasvuo. "Today we have hundreds of millions of people who are having their first Internet experience on the phone. This is a good indication."
Nokia will face a challenge to differentiate itself in what is already a very crowded sector, but its brand strength, telco expertise and manufacturing experience should stand it in good stead.
