Nokia to be renamed as ‘Microsoft Mobile’

Rumor is in the air that Nokia is going to change its name, there is a leaked official, Microsoft email stating that once the software giant (Microsoft) completes its acquisition over Nokia; it will rename its mobile division to ‘Microsoft Mobile’. Microsoft acquired Nokia for $7.2 billion last year in September.

As reported, the leaked email was sent by Microsoft to its suppliers and was acquired by the Nokia Power User blog. The email mentioned about the name change and Microsoft’s attempts to assure suppliers of its quality and honor its commitments even after the acquisition.

The actual lines of the email were:

“Please note that upon the close of the transaction between Microsoft and Nokia, the name of Nokia Corporation/Nokia Oy will change to Microsoft Mobile Microsoft.Microsoft Mobile Oy is the legal entity name that should be used for VAT IDs and for the issuance of invoices.”

Nokia is a Finnish company .Its name ‘Nokia’ was first established in 1871 after the city where it was incorporated. In the beginning, the company made wood pulp and rubber. In 1967, a separate division was established that manufactured telecommunications equipment. But after facing losses in sales and profits due to increased competition from other companies like Samsung and Apple; Nokia was acquired by Microsoft in September 2013.And so Nokia’s products were realigned to focus on Microsoft’s new mobile operating system, i.e. Windows Phone.

If the rumor about the official email comes out to be true, then we can expect the name change to go live by the end of this month in U.S. and in many European countries. Although in India, Microsoft’s Nokia acquisition is facing problems due to tax dispute. The dispute is over the government’s claim that Nokia owes between $650 million and $3.4 billion in unpaid taxes. The government said that it will only allow for the transfer of Nokia’s manufacturing plant in Chennai to Microsoft after the taxes has been paid. The plant will be important to Microsoft since it is one of Nokia’s most valuable global assets and employs over 8,000 people who make up to 25% of the workforce that Microsoft will gain from Nokia because of the acquisition.

In India, Nokia has attained a great level of goodwill and trust among the consumers in the past. And thus it is likely that Microsoft may not be able to get immediate positive outcomes here after the name change. So, if the software giant wants to maintain and grow Nokia’s considerable market share in India then it has to spend a lot of money on marketing and public awareness(especially in low priced mobile segment).