Sunnyvale, California — Yahoo chief executive Carol Bartz has scheduled a press conference in New York for Monday, when it may soon announce a partnership with Espoo, Finland-based mobile phone manufacturer Nokia, and is expected to reveal a “Project Nike”. According to the latest information on the matter, the duo might announce a partnership to deliver Yahoo email, search and other applications and services to Nokia handsets, yet nothing is official.
While Google has captured much of the technology attention from media this week with its I/O conference, Yahoo is anticipating to grab the spotlight next week. The venerable Internet company has announced a major press event for Monday, when it’s expected to reveal a new collaboration with Nokia.
This is merely a rudimentary report unveiled today by All Things Digital, and FT colleague Andrew Ward. The specific content of the event has not been announced, but according to news reports, the effort has been code-named “Project Nike” — with no reference to the sportswear maker that has appropriated the name of the Greek goddess of victory.
Yahoo! already mailed out invites for the aforesaid press-conference, yet the announcement does not offer too many details on what should be unveiled. “Please join Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz for an exciting announcement about providing global consumers with rich online and mobile experiences, and bringing forward a new era in keeping consumers connected,” the invite reads, according to All Things Digital.
Supposedly Nokia, which accounted around $12.7 billion in sales for the first quarter of this year, is gearing up to start incorporating Yahoo’s services into its products. However, some Nokia devices already offer Yahoo services, as do mobile products from Samsung that are built on the Android or Bada operating systems.
Also, the Internet company has already had various beginnings in the mobile phone area, but none successfully completed, even if it has a wide range of partnerships with handset vendors and carriers around the world. However, this deal with Nokia could mark Yahoo’s success in the area. For one, the company does not have its own mobile OS, as Google has, while the handset vendor is struggling to maintain its leading position on the market, and a partnership between the too should help both companies offer more to their users.
“Recently, Nokia has offered devices that people do not want and Yahoo has launched mobile services that they do not want,” said one person familiar with the discussions, the news site states. “Perhaps in working together, they might find a way to finally create some value.” The deal between the two will certainly get a lot of attention, yet it remains to be seen what it will actually include.
The fit does make sense. Mobile and international operations have been two of Ms Bartz’ major priorities. Besides, Nokia is putting much effort into phones that browse the Web and offer applications. But the universe is rapidly moving towards more fully functioning phones and that is where the advertising money is going as well.
So the Yahoo-Nokia image that calls to mind is that of a couple of wallflowers at the high school dance, eyeing the clock and each other, and deciding they might as well have one go before the music stops.