Nokia: leaks cause us major problems. Us: so get your act together.
By Ryan Block 
posted June 20th 2008 7:16PM
posted June 20th 2008 7:16PM
Now here's something you don't see every day: a manufacturer openly complaining about its own product leaks on their corporate blog. Charlie from Nokia would "like to ask folks to do less peddling in [their] trade secrets," and lays out the myriad ways in which products get leaked (partners, employees, etc.), the supposed negative impact it has on Nokia's bottom line (lost money, angry customers, whatever), and how they feel about it (really upset). It's an interesting and sensitive topic because while companies hate having their products leaked, leaked products are our clearly part of our stock and trade here at Engadget.Nokia kind of sums up their stance with this bit: "There are a lot of folks behind a product and leaks really screw up all the efforts." So yeah, we totally get that no one wants to have their inside info shared with the outside world -- we're a company too, and don't feel any differently. But it's up to each organization to insulate knowledge of its workings and products to prevent these kinds of leaks. It's not necessarily easy, but think there are few leaks that aren't preventable -- it's really a matter of companies taking their information security into their own hands. But just so Nokia (and everyone else) hears the other side of the story:
Not only do leaks drum up buzz and help customers make advance purchasing decisions (like whether to buy now or hold out for something coming down the pipe they'd prefer), it allows other companies to keep a closer eye on their competition. This means the marketplace is likelier to produce a product that's cheaper and/or better, if not also launched sooner. While that really sucks for the company whose products were leaked, it's ultimately really good for the consumer -- and that's who we represent. (Oh, and claiming leaks result in "a bunch of writers with no story" is actually kind of insulting to tech journos' collective intelligence.)
What we find really strange, though, is the attitude product people have about leaks totally "screwing up their efforts," which completely forsakes the early feedback they COULD be getting from their best and most engaged customers. This is precisely why some product "leaks" are actually plants to solicit unfiltered public feedback. (Yes, that really happens, although not very often.) That feedback can be positively unequaled in outing whether a product is on the right track, and we've been around long enough to know that if a product in its early stages isn't headed in the right direction, there's little chance it will be by the time it's released. Just remember that when you blame product leaks for ruining the launch of your next crappy device, okay?
The reason people here in the US associate Nokia with crap is because all of Nokia's nicer phones aren't sold here. All the high-end N- and E-series phones aren't available through normal channels. AT&T/Cingular had the pathetic E62, instead of the E61i that was far superior. Same goes for the N75.
If you do some research, you'll learn that Americans truly get the shaft on the nice phones. Why? Because most Americans don't give two shits and just take the low-end free device......which is a lot of Nokia stuff lately.
Go read about phones like the N82, E51, E61i, etc. Better yet, visit a Nokia flagship store and try it for yourself instead of passing judgment so quickly.
I agree. Nokia makes the best mobile phones. S60 has really developed, and is now quite snappy to use. Americans don't know, because they get the crappy versions, not the high end versions. If they used the same bandwidths as the rest of the world, it would be different.
Nokia seems hire 10 product managers and marketing people for every line they create, and they have far, far too many lines. If they had more focus and engaged (get it?) their customers more rather than making us choose whether we want a good camera OR a touch screen OR... they'd be a lot better off this than whining.
As consumers, we have every right to ask for the most knowledge, the most involvement, and the least compromise from our products. Nokia is an utter failure in this regard. Hopefully they will make up for their tactics and get something like Android, but they don't trust themselves enough to be buying hardware and reselling it in a nicely integrated package
Geez, geography assumptions on parade...
Arnoldcarsnickname, mrhahn assumed you were in N America, when apparently you're in Belgium. Easy mistake to make, as your profile is private. Then you turn around and slam Americans, because, 'if polled we usually reply that Belgium is in America" anyway. Huh?? mrhahn said "we Europeans", so he's not an American making that mistake, he's in your union...
And yes, we do have a lot of stupid people who don't know geography. But then again, we don't have all the idiots - been to a football/soccer game lately?
Finally, ...sigh...when are Europeans going to get over that everyone hasn't memorized every country's location in the EU? Do they know where all the states are? When I lived in Spain, the only way I could explain my home was that it was in a state "near Chicago"- to which most replied, "Ohhhh, Al Capone - BANG BANG!" Yeah, that sums up the city pretty well. And Paris is just a guillotine. Point being, we're all a bit centric, aren't we?
You can't compare states to countries. Does each state have its own language? Its own culture?
Does each European country have the same stores as the next? The same architecture? The same history? The same government?
Whereever I've been in the states looks pretty much the same as the previous place. Drive a few hundred miles in the EU and you'll be somewhere that looks and feels completely different.
actually... yes most states that are worth talking about have a clear culture that distinguishes them from the other. Look at Texas vs. New York vs. California vs. Florida. They are all drastically different. The people speak differently, the terrain is different, the weather is different, the food is different.
Don't think that the United States is just one big shopping mall, we have local cultures that are worth talking about.
Oh Nokia, somebody call the waambulance!
Wow,
As much as I like getting an early view of what is up and coming, leaks do more harm in providing product details to competitors than they ever could assist by generating hype for a product. A lot of technology companies spend a lot of time going from a concept to production, and some are much faster than others. Leaking a design or even specifications represents a significant exposure to competitors and can be very damaging for a new and innovative product. This kind of journalism does hurt a companies bottom line, and not just Nokia's.
There is a reason it is called intellectual property... It is owned by the folks who thought it up, which means it really is the owner's choice when any details should be made public.
With the iPhone 3G coming maybe Nokia should just decide to quit the smartphone the business and make furniture instead. The N95 is going to end up as Nokia's loss leader due to it's high cost.
It seems you don't know what a loss leader is :)
It's poor management that's causing Nokia problems, not leaks.
care to back that up with some proof. Give me a break.
quick question though, how many "leaks" does anyone believe, how many "rumors" that are posted on this site everyday get passed over as just that.
these leaks, some are on purpose some are not and then when the products are leaked ppl doubt them till the company has the official word, i dont know why they are complaining.
if it were me, i would try to control the leaks, the best feedback you can possibly get is from the ppl who are willing to buy first, they are 9/10 the most demanding users and know everything about the product inside and out.
best market research you can possibly hope for and its free. mind you the internet does nothing but complain however there are some soldiers out there wading through the trash.
"Nokia kind of sums up their stance with this bit: "There are a lot of folks behind a product and leaks really screw up all the efforts." So yeah, we totally get that no one wants to have their inside info shared with the outside world -- we're a company too, and don't feel any differently. But it's up to each organization to insulate knowledge of its workings and products to prevent these kinds of leaks."
I agree completely. But did you think that maybe one of their purposes was to deter those leaks from their side?
I'm no Nokia fan, and I totally agree that they should clean their own house before venting their spleen at the rumor sites. And I love Engadget. Love it, love it.
But honestly, guys, let's not take ourselves too seriously with this "representing the consumer" stuff, as if Engadget's entire raison d'etre is to promote free enterprise to the ultimate benefit of the buying public.
As someone else noted, Engadget is here because nerds like us are so anal and obsessive about consumer electronics that we simply HAVE to have a constant feed of new and "exclusive" information. I see it as no better and no different than those people who constantly monitor PerezHilton.com or GoFugYourself for celebrity gossip.
And that's totally cool. It is what it is. But let's not pretend like we're on some moral high ground, catering to the curiosity of techno news junkies.
And frankly, any argument by Engadget asserting that Nokia benefits from leaks and leak blogs ("they create buzz", "they provide valuable feedback for product development") is highly disingenuous, given that such a position just so happens to be how Engadget turns a profit.
Criticizing Nokia for failing to embrace the blogosphere's discourse on illicitly-released proprietary information is almost comically self-serving, not to mention a wee bit pompous.
Again, Ryan, love the site. Don't love the high horse you're riding on in this post. It's a bit off-putting, honestly.
everyone is all over the whiny-ness of this report, but what is the bigger picture? is Nokia is trouble and putting out an early excuse? companies dont complain when they are secure and doing well, only when they see a threat...
your last sentance makes the whole lot irrelevant, resorting to cheap jabs like a SE fan boy
Leaks: It's better than saying "Our product sucks".
Nokia has their out-dated models that don't sell anymore since people are wanting 3G iPhones, touchscreens from HTC/LG/Samsung and phones with Android.
Does anyone remember that it was only few days ago when Nokia 'leaked' themselfs s60 touchscreen/'Tube' promotion video made by the Ad Agency that people would wait for another 6-9 months before their first gen iPhone copy comes to market and has a Wow -factor with Styluspen steering since it is the only thing beside a needle that can hit their miniature virtual keybord ;)
Bir harsh to accure someone for leaks while doing it yourself and at the same time their own planned 'leaks' are eating their current markets.
For nokia, Iphone is nothing, just a another annoying american company trying to take some limited market, in fact last year was a good year for Nokia.
They do have to give them to the FCC who always wave around crappy photos of the shiny new phone.
The FCC photos are the ones the company gave aren't they? perhaps the companies should get one of their PR photographers to do the FCC/patent photo's too already.
But didnt leaks and speculation help effect the development of one palms devices?
Ryan has obviously been brainwashed by Apple..which in my opinion, has produced plenty of 'crappy products' as much as any other manufacturer out there.
lol I checked your posting history to see if you were yourself free of bias and I see your mostly post to win free stuff in the giveaway threads, courtesy of ryan's engadget...
Oh and one post complimenting a new nokia.
Talking about leaks, is it me or have there been no oil-spills in the news since the price of oil skyrocketed? Coincidence?
paranoia /par@"nOI@/ n.. [mod.L f. Gk, f. paranoos distracted, f. as PARA- + noos, nous mind: see -IC.] ;)
Hey Nokia. Get your act together and stop letting the leaks happen. Its your company. Apple makes crap and seems to be able to keep their stuff under pretty tight security. You guys actually make some sweet phones.
I think your "fence out" approach to this is kind of insane. Basically it's cool because it's good for you, and hey if they can't keep the info from you, then it's their fault. Okay, so if I go rob a bank, and take their money, hey that's the banks fault because they didn't protect the money sufficiently? Ya......
Either stealing their company secrets is wrong, or it's not. I like how you bring up that you're a company as well, and you wouldn't want anyone to know what's going on in your company, though I doubt anyone cares, unlike nokia, which people care about. I'm pretty sure if people gave a rats ass about what you guys do, we would know.
Nokia is irrelevant?
Last year Nokia sold the most music players, the most GPS units, and the most digital cameras of anyone.
Apple is fighting to sell 10 million iPhones. Nokia sells over 400 million phones every year.
Leaks are a cool thing to look at and seem to be somewhat of a dirty secret on blogs, etc. People want to be prepared and know what's coming so they don't buy an inferior product 2 weeks before the release of a better option.
BUT, this is capitalism. If a company like Nokia or Apple can attribute significant losses in capital gains due to the leaking of a few photos from a small number of corrupt employees and sites like Engadget proliferating this problem.. I say stop catering to people who want the leaks. Why?
Because right now, our economy is in the tank and it's only going to get worse. The internet has crippled some major companies by taking huge chunks out of the bottom line which was already rail thin. We need to give companies a chance to post up big profit and jump start our economy again.
Yes, Nokia leaks may not be a big deal in the grand scheme of it all, but there are countless other examples of the internet draining companies for every last dime and it's causing a ripple effect in our economy.
>>>I say stop catering to people who want the leaks. Why?
So you want censorship ? Why to bother then to give any free publicity to companies like Nokia, if they want to promote their products, put them buy their own ad space and state what they want.
What I checked from Nokia blog referred, they were mainly pointing up to E71, if they want to keep tech editors not to write about them before launch they can just stop sending them for review weeks before the lauch or start to require NDA that expires on lauch date etc - same thing that Apple does.
Hmm.. I'm kind of torn on this.
I agree that the Nokia loses a little of it's shock value with its product info is leaked, but as a consumer of Nokia products, I love the discussion that follows in the comments (and for the most part, they are usually favorable to the Nokia and I would think would drive up their bottom line). It helps me learn more about what's coming and what's available.
Just like when I look (err... skim.. don't want to know too much) movie reviews to know if it's worth my time and money, I'd like to get the same from products which are going to be a much larger investment of both.
So, I hope Engadget keeps doing what it's doing. If they are doing anything illegal or unethical to get the information, then yeah, stop. But if the information is out there and available, then report on it.
Nokia, if your product is worth it (and many of them are), I and others will buy it, whether we know about it in advance or not.
I compared usability and features of high end phones recently in a rather hard evaluation. A Nokia N95 8G won and I was surprised as I had expected Apple's iPhone to win. - So in terms of sleek cell phones, I think you should seriously look at Apple, HTC, Sony Ericsson, and of course Nokia.
The N95 is great in almost every aspect. Phone, sound player, camera, GPS, WLAN client, .. - As I only have one hand, I do not like touch screen phones, as these seem to be built to make it particularly difficult to hold / operate them. The N95 also excels as being quite 1-hand-use-friendly.
Thank you, Nokia :-)
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