HMD Global is a Finnish mobile phone company that has been making waves in the smartphone industry since its founding in 2016. The company has quickly risen to prominence by producing high-quality smartphones under the Nokia brand, a name that has been synonymous with innovation and reliability for decades. But who founded HMD Global, and how did they manage to achieve such success in such a short amount of time? In this post, we will explore the history of HMD Global, its founders, and how they have managed to carve out a unique niche in the highly competitive world of mobile phones.
About HMD Global
HMD Global Oy, also known as HMD and Nokia Mobile, is a Finnish mobile phone maker that specializes in producing smartphones and feature phones. The company was formed after Nokia sold its mobile phone business to Microsoft in 2014, only to buy it back in 2016. On December 1, 2016, HMD began selling Nokia-branded mobile phones and has since been the exclusive licensee of the Nokia brand for mobile phones. The HMD brand is used for internal corporate purposes, while Nokia Mobile is used in advertising and on social media.
HMD has partnered with Google and uses the Android operating system through the Android One program on their smartphones. Feature phones from HMD use the Series 30+ platform or, more recently, the KaiOS derived from Firefox OS.
Headquartered in Espoo, Finland, HMD is mainly managed by former Nokia executives. Arto Nummela, a Nokia veteran of 17 years, served as the first CEO until July 2017 when Florian Seiche, the company’s president, took over as CEO. FIH Mobile, a subsidiary of Foxconn, handles the manufacturing of HMD. Nokia is a partner and investor in HMD, providing patents, technologies, and mandatory requirements in exchange for royalty payments. HMD’s marketing strategy emphasizes the brand’s trust, nostalgia, and the “pure, secure, and up-to-date” features of Nokia phones, referring to the stock Android interface and the company’s commitment to fast updates.
Who founded HMD Global?
HMD Global was founded by a group of former Nokia executives, including Arto Nummela, who served as the company’s first CEO.
Product and services
Smartphones and Tablets
Nokia ↗ has released smartphones under two different series. The first series called the Nokia 1-digit series, was released between 2017 and 2021. The second series called the Nokia letter-number series, has been released since 2019 and is still in production.
Nokia has released tablets with different operating systems, including the Nokia Series 30+/Feature Phone OS, Nokia KaiOS, and the Nokia Originals Series.
Some of the notable devices in the Nokia Originals Series include the Nokia 3310 (2017), Nokia 8110 4G, Nokia 2720 Flip, Nokia 5310 (2020), Nokia 6310 (2021), Nokia 6300 4G, Nokia 8000 4G, and Nokia 8210 4G.
Other devices sold by HMD Global In addition to smartphones and tablets, HMD Global also sells other devices that were previously sold by Microsoft Mobile. These devices include the Nokia 105 (2015), Nokia 130, Nokia 216, and Nokia 230.
Services HMD Mobile is a SIM card operator in the UK.
Discontinued products and services HMD Connect, a roaming service, was discontinued on December 15, 2022.
Software
HMD Global partners with Google to produce Nokia-branded smartphones running on the Android operating system, with minimal customization and fast software updates. HMD claims their phones are “pure, secure and up-to-date” with no bloatware or additional software. They also use Smart Feature OS and KaiOS for their feature phones.
Nokia considered joining Google’s Open Handset Alliance but instead created the rival Symbian Foundation in 2008. Nokia experimented with Android before adopting Windows Phone in 2011. After the sale of Nokia to Microsoft, Nokia Technologies developed the N1 Android tablet and returned to smartphones in 2017 through a licensing strategy with the formation of HMD Global. Smart Feature OS provides smartphone capabilities on devices with a feature phone form factor.
Hardware
HMD’s Nokia smartphones follow the typical Scandinavian design and aesthetics, which are characterized by clean and minimal styling. They aim to evoke memories of the previous Lumia series and are designed to stay loyal to Nokia’s heritage of “design, robustness, and reliability.” The design team, led by Raun Forsyth and Alasdair McPhail, emphasizes the use of high-quality materials in their products.
The Nokia 5, 6, and 8 are made from a single block of 6000 series aluminium, while the Nokia 7 is crafted from 7000 series aluminium. The Nokia 8 Sirocco ↗, on the other hand, is made from a single block of stainless steel.
In 2017, Nokia began resurrecting its classic devices. The initiative started with the introduction of a new 3310 handset in May 2017 at the Mobile World Congress. This device had an updated design language that was similar to the original, which debuted in September 2000. Although it was still a feature phone, it came with a fresh operating system, coloured display, and Nokia native applications. After the success of this initiative, Nokia continued to reboot its classic phones, such as the Nokia 8110, which received a 4G update, excellent battery life, and classic Nokia apps.
History of HMD Global
Nokia was a major mobile phone and smartphone maker until it started struggling to maintain market leadership in the face of competition from Apple, Samsung, and Google. Despite Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft to use its operating system, Windows Phone, Nokia was unable to maintain its once significant market share due to various factors, including poor choice of operating systems and the shift to smartphones. By the early 2010s, Nokia had lost significant market share to Apple and Samsung. In 2014, Nokia’s mobile phone business was sold to Microsoft. However, the Nokia brand struggled to gain significant market share due to the unpopularity of the Windows Phone.
The Nokia brand eventually returned to the smartphone market under the leadership of CEO Rajeev Suri, and on 18 May 2016, Microsoft Mobile sold its feature phone business to HMD Global and FIH Mobile, which included design rights and rights to use the Nokia brand on all types of mobile phones and tablets worldwide until 2024, except in Japan. HMD products were to be manufactured in the FIH/Foxconn factories, and HMD decided to spend US$500 million to support the marketing of its new products over the next three years.
HMD’s first devices were Nokia 150 and 150 Dual SIM feature phones, and the first Android smartphone was Nokia 6. HMD also relaunched the iconic Nokia 3310 and introduced two new Android devices named Nokia 3 and Nokia 5 at Mobile World Congress in February 2017.
In July 2017, HMD partnered with Carl Zeiss AG to provide camera lens optics for Nokia smartphones and purchased 500 design patents from Microsoft Mobile. HMD introduced its first flagship Nokia smartphone, the Nokia 8, in August 2017, featuring Dual-Sight and OZO Audio. By January 2018, HMD Global had acquired the Asha brand name and introduced a new high-end flagship, Nokia 8 Sirocco, along with Nokia 7 Plus and Nokia 1.
On 5 December 2018, HMD announced that it had raised $100 million in a funding round led by Geneva-based Ginko Ventures and with participation from DMJ Asia Investment Opportunity and Wonderful Stars, bringing the company’s valuation to over $1 billion.
At Mobile World Congress 2019, HMD announced several new devices, including the Nokia 9 PureView, which features a five-camera array developed in partnership with Light. They also announced the Nokia 4.2, Nokia 3.2, and Nokia 1 Plus, all of which run on Android One.
In February 2020, HMD announced the Nokia 8.3 5G, its first 5G smartphone, along with the Nokia 5.3 and Nokia 1.3. The Nokia 8.3 5G is compatible with more than 90% of 5G networks globally and is also the first smartphone to feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G 5G modular platform.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, HMD announced that it would be postponing its phone launches and events.
In March 2021, HMD announced the Nokia X20 and Nokia X10, the first smartphones from the company to feature 5G connectivity across all models. They also announced the Nokia G20 and Nokia G10, which feature three years of security updates.
As of 2021, HMD Global sells smartphones and feature phones under the Nokia brand, with a focus on providing a pure, secure, and up-to-date Android experience. The company has also expanded into smart home and IoT products, including smart lighting and home security solutions.
