Nokia phone maker HMD is creating its own smartphone brand

HMD Global, the Finnish company best known for producing Nokia-branded smartphones, has revealed plans to launch its own line of mobile devices. On Monday, HMD Global CEO Jean-Francois Baril announced on Linkedin that the company will be expanding its portfolio with a new HMD brand that will co-exist alongside its Nokia phones and collaborations with “exciting new partners” that have yet to be disclosed.

“It has been a great journey as ‘HMD – the home of Nokia phones’ – an exclusive position we have held for the past six years,” said Baril. “Now we are ready for the next step on our journey – to enter the market independently as a force to create a new world for telecommunications focused on consumer needs.”

No additional information has been provided regarding the new HMD products, nor any hints at a potential release date. We have reached out to HMD Global to request further details and will update this story should we hear back. 

HMD Global was formed after Microsoft relinquished its rights to the Nokia brand in 2016. Foxconn took over Microsoft’s feature phone business, and Foxconn founder Terry Gou is the main owner of HMD Global. Nokia-branded devices are currently produced by Foxconn, so it’s likely that any HMD-branded products in the pipeline will also be manufactured by the Taiwanese tech giant.

Nokia-branded phones like the Nokia C32 released by HMD have largely sat in the budget-to-mid-tier category so far, and it looks like future HMD-branded devices may follow suit. Baril says the company will continue to “design for a more sustainable and affordable future.” Even if Foxconn is behind the actual manufacturing of these new devices, HMD Global Oy, headquartered in Espoo, is still largely run by former Nokia executives so this could be an opportunity for the company to reclaim some of the brand’s legacy under a new name.