Nokia seeks to emulate Apple's model in partnership with carriers
In an interview with newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung Nokia indicated that it was interested in pursuing a share of carrier revenues for data services. Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said "When it involves mobile phones, we'll be staying with our existing business model, which means getting paid for the device itself. But where we provide new services, a turnover share is entirely possible,". Apple was the first phone manufacturer to obtain revenue sharing deals with carriers with its iPhone. Nokia seems to be indicating that it is seeking partnerships with carriers to share revenues derived from specific data services.
Nokia has been moving aggressively into the mobile services area, which could bring it in conflict with carriers that seek to provide similar services. Nokia this year has launched its OVI gateway for such services, including music and game stores. Nokia has already signed deals with some carriers to offer these services to customers on their networks, and these deals are likely to include some form of revenue sharing. Apple's deals with carriers have never been confirmed by any of the parties but persistent rumors indicate that Apple receives up to 30% of the revenue produced by customers who buy their iPhone.
