Nokia: One megapixel or higher camera phones to comprise more than 50% in 2005

Nokia says it will introduce about 40 cellular phones in 2005 and more than 50 percent will include cameras with resolutions of one megapixel or more, according to Bloomberg News.

Nokia's profit decreased 13 percent in the fourth quarter because it reduced prices to capture market share.  Bloomberg says, " Nokia's market share fell to a five-year low last year as consumers chose foldable camera phones made by Motorola Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co., prompting the company to cut prices and lift marketing spending.

Nokia' predicts sales of cellular phones in 2005 will increase 10 percent compared to last year's 643 million.  "Growth is expected to continue to be driven by replacement and upgrade sales in more developed markets with the availability of new features, services and cameras, and by new subscriber growth in developing mobile markets, as well as the widespread commercialization of 3G devices in the second half of 2005," the company's press release says.

Multimedia developments

Regarding Nokia's multimeda efforts, that include camera phones, MP3 players and games, the company says, "During the quarter, more than 30 operators worldwide, including in Japan, helped make the Nokia 6630 3G WCDMA megapixel smartphone a leader in the growing 3G WCDMA market. Nokia also began shipping the Nokia 6670 megapixel smartphone....

"In the developing area of mobile phone TV, Nokia signed several DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcast - Handheld) mobile phone TV pilots, including one with Crown Castle in the US and Bridgeway Networks in Australia, adding to the global pilots already underway.

"During the quarter, the DVB-H standard was finalized by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI)."