InterDigital Inc (IDCC)

[nieves]

Nokia unveils new phones for American markets



RELATED SYMBOLS: (NOK)

HELSINKI, Finland, Feb 11, 2003 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- Nokia Corp.
moved to beef up its product lineup in North and South America Tuesday,
unveiling three new phone models that it plans to begin selling later this year.

The new phones include a new color-screen model, as well as two basic phones for
Time Division Multiple Access networks, like those used by some American and
Latin American operators.

The TDMA market will be less crucial to phonemakers as traditional TDMA
operators, such as Cingular and AT&T Wireless Services Inc. build new networks
based on the GSM, or global system for wireless communications standard, that is
prevalent in Europe.

But TDMA is still an important standard in Latin America and the transition from
TDMA to GSM in the United States is moving more slowly than many observers had
expected.

"They have to continue to offer TDMA handsets to support their market share,"
Petri Arjama, an analyst at Handelsbanken Securities in Helsinki, said of Nokia.
"There are still a lot of U.S. customers, plus a lot of South American
customers.

Nokia said the color-screen model, which will work on GSM networks in the United
States, will go on sale in the spring. Known as the 3595, the phone will include
Java technology for downloadable games and support picture, or multimedia,
messaging.

Shipments of the new TDMA phones will begin in the second quarter, Nokia said.
Known as the 2220 and 2260, the phones will support text messaging and
electronic mail.

Arjama said the challenge for Nokia, if it wishes to increase its market share
in the U.S., remains to fill out its portfolio of phones for Code Division
Multiple Access operators there, such as Sprint Corp., preferably by adding
color-screen models.

Nokia has vowed to increase its worldwide share of the CDMA phone market this
year.

---

On the Net:

http://www.nokia.com



Copyright 2003 Associated Press, All rights reserved

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KEYWORD: HELSINKI, Finland
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