Ovi
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Italy's TIM signs up for Ovi, too
At first, Nokia's multimedia-centric Ovi announcement was met with a downright icy reception among European carriers for fear that it was going to hit 'em where it hurts -- in the bottom line. Things have been warming up, though, thanks in part to Nokia's willingness to customize carrier-branded devices to offer access to both Ovi services and carriers' own services side by side -- a tad confusing to consumers, yes, but likely a win-win for revenue. Telecom Italia is the latest group to give in and accept Nokia's encroachment on its bread and butter, agreeing to offer up the N81 and N95 8GB preloaded with the goods. They're calling it a "sustainable business model" with a "mutually beneficial approach" -- but ultimately, the proof's in the pudding, so we'll have to see how long this goes on once those two models have run their course.
Vodafone breaks rank, gives Nokia's Ovi the thumbs-up
Carrier reaction to Nokia's Ovi suite of multimedia apps has been tepid at best -- and understandably so, considering that the company's gunning for a share of on-device entertainment revenue, a cash stream historically reserved for carriers themselves. Fortunately for Espoo, though, the 800-pound gorilla of European carriers has gone against the trend to issue Ovi a hearty endorsement. Vodafone and Nokia have announced that Nokia handsets released on Voda in '08 will rock out with Ovi services installed -- with a catch, of course: Vodafone's own competing services will also be installed. The companies say it's a win for consumers because the diametrically opposed apps somehow compliment one another, but by loading both Nokia's Music Store and Vodafone's own music service, for example, it could all be a daunting challenge for consumers to figure out what's what. We'll have to wait and see how this all plays out on retail devices in a few months.
Nokia's Ovi unleashed: stay calm, it's only a brand
Nokia just took the wraps off their Ovi (which means "the door" in Finnish) Internet services brand. The idea is to pull the Nokia Music Store, N-Gage, Nokia Maps, and all future Nokia services into a single suite of service offerings. Over the next 12 months, Nokia announced that it would "integrate new user interface elements, service suites and web communities" into what they promise will be an "open environment." Expect to hear more from Ovi when it launches in Q4.
Nokia intros Music Store
Part of its new "Ovi" initiative of online mobile services, Nokia has announced its Music Store service today. Offering up a feature that seems like a perfect (if not obvious) use for HSDPA speeds on handsets, Music Store will offer seamless over-the-air music purchases and downloads directly from handsets combined with automatic two-way synchronization to the host PC. Other features include dynamic music recommendations and a "Mix Me" feature for creating playlists of recommended songs based on genre preferences. The192Kbps (DRM protected, only) WMA tracks will run €1 (about $1.36) with entire albums starting at €10 ($13.66); PC streaming will also be available for €10 a month. Look for it in Europe before the year's out, expanding to other markets thereafter.%Gallery-6518%
Nokia's N-Gage gaming service now official
Just as we expected, Nokia announced their totally revamped N-Gage gaming platform. An eco-sytstem now, covering software-enabled S60-based handsets, games, and a full-featured community-based service to link it all together. A new mobile gaming platform, if you will, which Nokia plans to extend beyond just Nokia devices. The service will offer tournaments, global rankings, and other events within the gaming community. Games will cost up to €10, are free to try, and can be rented over varying periods. All available starting November.
