Hello there,

There is a pertinent story about a man who was working on an oil platform in the North Sea. He woke up one night from a loud explosion, which suddenly set his entire oil platform on fire. In mere moments, he was surrounded by flames. Through the smoke and heat, he barely made his way out of the chaos to the platform’s edge. When he looked down over the edge, all he could see were the dark, cold, foreboding Atlantic waters.

As the fire approached him, the man had mere seconds to react. He could stand on the platform, and inevitably be consumed by the burning flames. Or, he could plunge 30 meters in to the freezing waters. The man was standing upon a “burning platform,” and he needed to make a choice.

He decided to jump. It was unexpected. In ordinary circumstances, the man would never consider plunging into icy waters. But these were not ordinary times – his platform was on fire. The man survived the fall and the waters. After he was rescued, he noted that a “burning platform” caused a radical change in his behaviour.

We too, are standing on a “burning platform,” and we must decide how we are going to change our behaviour.

Over the past few months, I’ve shared with you what I’ve heard from our shareholders, operators, developers, suppliers and from you. Today, I’m going to share what I’ve learned and what I have come to believe.

I have learned that we are standing on a burning platform.

And, we have more than one explosion – we have multiple points of scorching heat that are fuelling a blazing fire around us.

For example, there is intense heat coming from our competitors, more rapidly than we ever expected. Apple disrupted the market by redefining the smartphone and attracting developers to a closed, but very powerful ecosystem.

In 2008, Apple’s market share in the $300+ price range was 25 percent; by 2010 it escalated to 61 percent. They are enjoying a tremendous growth trajectory with a 78 percent earnings growth year over year in Q4 2010. Apple demonstrated that if designed well, consumers would buy a high-priced phone with a great experience and developers would build applications. They changed the game, and today, Apple owns the high-end range.

And then, there is Android. In about two years, Android created a platform that attracts application developers, service providers and hardware manufacturers. Android came in at the high-end, they are now winning the mid-range, and quickly they are going downstream to phones under €100. Google has become a gravitational force, drawing much of the industry’s innovation to its core.

Let’s not forget about the low-end price range. In 2008, MediaTek supplied complete reference designs for phone chipsets, which enabled manufacturers in the Shenzhen region of China to produce phones at an unbelievable pace. By some accounts, this ecosystem now produces more than one third of the phones sold globally – taking share from us in emerging markets.

While competitors poured flames on our market share, what happened at Nokia? We fell behind, we missed big trends, and we lost time. At that time, we thought we were making the right decisions; but, with the benefit of hindsight, we now find ourselves years behind.

The first iPhone shipped in 2007, and we still don’t have a product that is close to their experience. Android came on the scene just over 2 years ago, and this week they took our leadership position in smartphone volumes. Unbelievable.

We have some brilliant sources of innovation inside Nokia, but we are not bringing it to market fast enough. We thought MeeGo would be a platform for winning high-end smartphones. However, at this rate, by the end of 2011, we might have only one MeeGo product in the market.

At the midrange, we have Symbian. It has proven to be non-competitive in leading markets like North America. Additionally, Symbian is proving to be an increasingly difficult environment in which to develop to meet the continuously expanding consumer requirements, leading to slowness in product development and also creating a disadvantage when we seek to take advantage of new hardware platforms. As a result, if we continue like before, we will get further and further behind, while our competitors advance further and further ahead.

At the lower-end price range, Chinese OEMs are cranking out a device much faster than, as one Nokia employee said only partially in jest, “the time that it takes us to polish a PowerPoint presentation.” They are fast, they are cheap, and they are challenging us.

And the truly perplexing aspect is that we’re not even fighting with the right weapons. We are still too often trying to approach each price range on a device-to-device basis.

The battle of devices has now become a war of ecosystems, where ecosystems include not only the hardware and software of the device, but developers, applications, ecommerce, advertising, search, social applications, location-based services, unified communications and many other things. Our competitors aren’t taking our market share with devices; they are taking our market share with an entire ecosystem. This means we’re going to have to decide how we either build, catalyse or join an ecosystem.

This is one of the decisions we need to make. In the meantime, we’ve lost market share, we’ve lost mind share and we’ve lost time.

On Tuesday, Standard & Poor’s informed that they will put our A long term and A-1 short term ratings on negative credit watch. This is a similar rating action to the one that Moody’s took last week. Basically it means that during the next few weeks they will make an analysis of Nokia, and decide on a possible credit rating downgrade. Why are these credit agencies contemplating these changes? Because they are concerned about our competitiveness.

Consumer preference for Nokia declined worldwide. In the UK, our brand preference has slipped to 20 percent, which is 8 percent lower than last year. That means only 1 out of 5 people in the UK prefer Nokia to other brands. It’s also down in the other markets, which are traditionally our strongholds: Russia, Germany, Indonesia, UAE, and on and on and on.

How did we get to this point? Why did we fall behind when the world around us evolved?

This is what I have been trying to understand. I believe at least some of it has been due to our attitude inside Nokia. We poured gasoline on our own burning platform. I believe we have lacked accountability and leadership to align and direct the company through these disruptive times. We had a series of misses. We haven’t been delivering innovation fast enough. We’re not collaborating internally.

Nokia, our platform is burning.

We are working on a path forward — a path to rebuild our market leadership. When we share the new strategy on February 11, it will be a huge effort to transform our company. But, I believe that together, we can face the challenges ahead of us. Together, we can choose to define our future.

The burning platform, upon which the man found himself, caused the man to shift his behaviour, and take a bold and brave step into an uncertain future. He was able to tell his story. Now, we have a great opportunity to do the same.

Stephen.

Beer Sommeliers, F-Commerce, Objectifying Objects … just a few items from our list of 100 Things to Watch in 2011.

It’s a wide-ranging compilation that in part reflects broader shifts we’ve been tracking over the past few years, notably the evolution of the mobile phone into an “everything hub,” a trend we’ll see play out in myriad ways next year. Other items reflect counter-trends—for instance, to balance out our growing immersion in the digital world, people will increasingly embrace face-to-face gatherings and digital downtime.

Many of our Things to Watch are technology-centric, with smart infrastructure ramping up, the rise of tablets for tots and some truly futuristic-seeming developments (3D printing, virtual mirrors, electronic profiling). Web-wise, Things to Watch will include a growth in Facebook commerce, apps beyond mobile and more social browsers. The people on the list—from pop culture, sports, architecture, fashion and other sectors—have the potential to drive or shape trends in the near future.

Check out our list, along with a little bit about what makes each item worth watching, below. (Or to download the presentation with fully functioning links, click here.)

October, 2010

Another year has flown by like a bird in a hurry to migrate.  Is the planet spinning faster on its axis or is it because here time is meaningless?  Hassan asked me the other day how long I’ve been living here.  ‘Oh not so long,’ I mumbled looking down at my feet..  ‘Really! he said with a smile, ‘ perhaps 10 years  and you still don’t speak Arabic!’  Shame on me.  
 
This summer was even too hot for the birds to lift their wings.  Worse for Moroccans as Ramadan fell on the day when the temperature rose to 53 degrees and hovered between 45 & 50 for the whole month.  But, never let it be said the Moroccans don’t have a sense of humour.  Water guns were a la mode, not only aimed at each other but also the tourists who were stopping in their tracks for a quick spray.  Buckets of water appeared which the men poured over their heads - acceptable as long as they kept their mouths shut in case a drop entered into their mouths. Heaven forbid.  Am sure some cheated!  Wouldn’t you?   All this was done with shouts of laughter and for once no frayed nerves were seen in the last week.    
 
Autumn has arrived but the sun lingers on projecting wonderful shadow graphics on my white walls.  The sunsets are colourful abstract paintings which compensate for the pangs of despair when the golden light abruptly changes to black at 6pm.  It’s the season of hot chickpeas ladled out from huge pots, small barrows displaying slices of dazzling white coconut and golden pineapple, melons, apples, bananas, grapes, rosy globular grenadines, bright orange mandarins with green leaves attached are piled high on large barrows…... But these colourful narrow streets filled with mouth-watering splendour can abruptly turn into chaos .Yesterday I was standing on the sidelines watching as a long line of tooting cars, small trucks, braying donkeys, horses pulling loads of mattresses, men with carts shouting attention, attention, mobilites, bikes, bemused tourists, Moroccans of all shapes and dress, came to a sudden halt.  Suddenly a high pitched shriek pierced the air.  A young veiled woman in a hurry to bypass everyone and everything suddenly found herself hugged by a carcase of mutton hanging on a butchers hook, enveloping her body like a large pink and white cape.  I thought it definitely added to her look. This is the magic of Marrakech – a city of contrasts when the unexpected happens.
 
September and October have been full of cultural events and concerts. Highlight was the first International Contemporary Art Fair at the Palace Es Saadi which brought everyone out of the woodwork. Hailed as a success we hope it will be a yearly event.   The art galleries opened their doors to exhibitions of painting, sculpture and photograph. The Philharmonic Orchestra de Maroc presented a magnificent classical concert at the Theatre Royal – nothing royal about the seating!   Cushionless concrete gladiator banquettes or, if you were lucky, a faded, dirty piece of fabric covering a thin slab of foam.  Consequently after a moment your back aches, your head falls on to your hands, you twist and turn and suffer to the end.

Marrakech at night echoes with sounds of jazz, disco, funk, exotic dancers swaying their bodies to the beat of drums, cabarets, imported artists,  lounge bars for lounging lizards are très à la mode and new restaurants are springing up like geysers.  If you are a cinéphile the International Film Festival begins it’s week long programme first week December.  This year the theme is French – if the French are not on strike!
 
For the sporting addicts and adventurous the choice is vast -  surfing the waves at Essaouria, rafting or kayaking down the sublime valleys with a professional guide, trekking, cycling, horseback riding in the mountains, roaring off on the road to discovery on a rented BMW motorbike , and of course the usual desert trek on dromedaries.   If the day is fine and the wind is blowing in the right direction, a professional pilot will fly you over the Marrakech region in a hot air balloon.  The views are fabulous as you sweep over the magnificent landscape. And of course there is always golf, golf and more golf.
 
At the moment of writing the International Rally Oilibya is taking place over the Dunes. Exciting as it may be for the drivers, why can’t they leave the dunes sleeping in their silent world!   Which brings to mind when living in Paris in the 80’s/90’s,  working as the only white journalist on two magazines aimed at the African and African/American markets and being extremely adventurous I asked the French publisher to sponsor me in the Paris-Dakar race.  At that time it was highly dangerous – just up my alley. However, after considerable thought he decided I was more useful alive than dead!
 
If all the above doesn’t appeal to your artistic senses, stay here and  let me take you by the hand to places tourists rarely go, have a wonderful romantic dinner prepared by Najia, listen to music with a glass in your hand, lie in the sun, read and relax. As a wonderful couple from New York wrote: “We've been going to Marrakech for business and pleasure for  many years and have stayed at some of the most exclusive hotels and riads. You never got away from the idea that you were a tourist. At this beautiful riad, you feel that you are a part of the Marrakesh scene. There are only 3 lovingly decorated rooms, each opening onto the beautiful tree- filled,  fountain-gurgling, patio garden. The delicious breakfasts included fresh fruit compote, fresh squeezed orange juice, the lightest crepe-like beghrir and good, strong coffee. But  the icing on the cake of this delightful place is the wonderfully, literate,  quirky owner, Patricia Lebaud, who lives on the premises and turned us on to such insider things as gallery openings, Andalusian music concerts………..We will return.   Hope to see you there.”

I too hope so.        

Patricia    

L'intérêt de cette maison de vacances est double : Ultra contemporain et dépouillé de tout décorum oriental / Situé face aux jardins de la Mamounia donc ultra paisible avec une vue enchanteresse.

Il y a trois chambres, un grand bassin piscine sur le toit qui est chauffée, du personnel à  disposition...

Je mets également à jour le mur deVillaNovo sur Facebook assez régulièrement.

Nous allons bien finir par l'embaucher ce community manager !