History Of Nokia

In the world of mobile phones, Finnish company Nokia is king. The icy nation of Finland, near the top of the world wouldn't seem to be the most likely place for electronic innovations, but a company with humble beginnings transformed itself into the largest manufacturer of mobile phones in the world. The journey for Nokia to become the leader in this race is a seemingly unlikely one, but it became one of the world's great success stories.

In 1865, a former mining engineer, Knut Fredrik Idestam, founded a pulp factory on the Tammerkoski rapids in the south of Finland. His intent was to introduce an advanced form of paper manufacturing from Germany to Finland. It was a success, so Idestam opened a second plant near the Nokianvirta river, which inspired the name of his new company: Nokia Wood Mills. The name "nokia" itself is a local term for a small furry animal of the marten family.

In 1898, a new company, known as Finnish Rubber Works, opened in Finland to capitalize on the lucrative rubber industry, and used Nokia as one of the brands they sold. Fourteen years later, a third company, named Finnish Cable Works, opened. Their work in young industry of telephone and telegraph wires actually established what would become the Nokia of today. Shortly after World War I ended, Finnish Rubber Works purchased both Nokia Wood Mills and Finnish Cable Works. The companies continued in their respective industries separately, and it was not until incorporation in 1967 that all three companies came under the banner of the modern Nokia Corporation.

This company was a giant, and manufactured many different products, including: paper, boots, computers, tires, capacitors, and televisions. By this time, Finnish Cable Works had made its first steps into the electronics field; its first creation was a pulse analyzer for nuclear power plants. However, with work on an early version of the car phone known as the ARP-phone, Nokia got its feet wet in the world of mobile telecommunications. Early efforts included development of the technology known as NMT, an early mobile telephony system that was the first to offer international roaming capabilities.

The 1980's was the watershed decade for Nokia in telecommunications. With the development of the Nokia DX-200, the first fully operational digital telephone switch, Nokia made its mark. The DX-200 offered an adaptable flexibility for use in other products, and was eventually incorporated into the mobile industry's major technology standard, GSM (Global System for Mobile communications). In 1987, with the release of the Mobira Cityman, Nokia gave the world the first handheld NMT phone.

From there, thanks to years of working with NMT, Nokia now focused upon the development of GSM;.in 1991, Nokia equipment was used to make the first GSM call. In 1992, telecommunications was declared to be the main focus of the corporation. The Nokia 1101 was the first GSM handset released, and established the pattern of Nokia branding most of their phones with a numeric identifier. Things really picked up with the first satellite call being made on Nokia equipment, as well as the first Internet capable (WAP-enabled) phone. By 1998, they were the world leader, and by 2005, had sold their one-billionth phone.

From its humble beginnings on the banks of a Finnish river, through the social, economic and political upheavals of the 20th century, Nokia emerged as has maintained its position as a leader in not only the telecommunications field, but changing how people live their lives. Everyday, millions across the globe rely upon Nokia mobile phones in their personal and professional lives. Nokia continues to live up to its slogan: "Connecting People."