GoD: Nokia Details N-Gage Launch, Ovi, Nokia Music Store

At the Nokia Go Play event held in London Nokia unveiled a new internet services brand name, Ovi, an umbrella brand to contain both the N-Gage and new Nokia Music Store services. The N-Gage service is to be available globally in November 2007, and new optimized handsets, including the Nokia N81 which features dedicated music and gaming keys, are to be released. Ovi means ‘door' in Finnish and is to "enable consumers to easily access their existing social network, communities and content, as well as acting as a gateway to Nokia services." Also under the Ovi umbrella is Nokia Maps, a navigation service that offers maps, city guides and more to compatible mobile devices. Nokia aims to bring more Internet based services to Ovi in the coming months. Speaking at the event, Nokia President and Chief Executive Officer Olli Pekka Kallasvuo presented Ovi and the new Nokia services for consumers, and spoke about the company's future plans as an Internet company: "The industry is converging towards Internet driven experiences and Ovi represents Nokia's vision in combining the Internet and mobility. Nokia is the number one mobile device company in the world. Looking into the future, we will deliver great devices, combined with compelling experiences and services, to make it easy for people to unlock the potential of the Internet." "We started this journey with our navigation services earlier this year and we are now combining all our services into a single branded offering - Ovi by Nokia. Over the coming 12 months, you will see us integrate new user interface elements, service suites and web communities to Ovi," added Kallasvuo. The N-Gage service is to be available globally in November 2007, with the free N-Gage application able to be downloaded from http://www.n-gage.com (PC or mobile) and installed in compatible devices. The N-Gage application is to be embedded in Nokia devices, including the new Nokia N81 and Nokia N95 8GB. "We know that people want integrated access to great content without the constraints of having to sit behind a computer or in front of a TV. With the Nokia Music Store and N-Gage services, you can access the best in music and games directly from your Nokia Nseries multimedia computer," said Anssi Vanjoki, executive vice president and general manager, Multimedia, Nokia. "We expect the mobile device to become the most popular platform - the ‘fourth screen' - for enjoying your digital content. Ovi brings our Internet services vision to life, where people can create, share and consume facts, feelings and emotions wherever and whenever." [Further coverage of mobile game news and features is available at CMP Game Group site GamesOnDeck, from which this story is cross-posted.]