Nokia will recover from its troubles, says expert

While Nokia may be suffering dismal earnings reports and slumping share prices, the troubled Finnish phone maker has reason to be optimistic, according to an expert.

Richard Smith, CTO of Open Path Products, said to T3, “Nokia are driven. Part of the problem was their lethargy. They were the big leader for a long time, and now if nothing else, fear is going to drive them.”

Indeed, the products Nokia have released in the last year or so are of a much higher quality than their first wave of smartphones. Since announcing their partnership with Microsoft and making their high-end phones exclusively for Windows Phone, Nokia have released their Lumia phone range, with the Lumia 900 reportedly selling very well.

Furthermore, Microsoft’s announcement of Windows Phone 8 last week turned a lot of heads, with the OS going down well with both developers and potential consumers. An added incentive for app developers is that Microsoft give them 80% of the profits their apps make on WP 8, as opposed to just 30% on iOS.

“Microsoft and Nokia in particular are working very hard to develop a viable third eco-system, so they’ll be pulling out all the tricks to try and lure those [top dog developers] guys back,” said Smith.

“Before, Apple were the innovators of the industry, now they’re the old grandfathers [other companies] are trying to knock off the pedestal. It’s companies like Nokia and Microsoft who’re tyring to be disruptive and innovative. While Apple is busy being comfortable on top, Nokia’s whole advertising campaign hopes to make a solid point: we’re not an iPhone.

An uncharacteristically optimistic prognosis for Nokia then. Let’s see if it comes to fruition.