Press Release
21 May 2019
Espoo, Finland – The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Nokia Corporation is being held today, Tuesday 21 May 2019 in Helsinki, Finland.
In addition to addressing the company’s 2018 financial performance and Group Annual Accounts, at the AGM, Rajeev Suri, President and CEO of Nokia Corporation, speaks on environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters and provides an update on one of the most radical technology transitions ever as 4G begins to give way to 5G.
Nokia also emphasizes today efforts undertaken to eliminate, by July 2019, any statistically significant pay gap in the company that cannot be explained by factors such as performance, experience, job grade, or location. Nokia will become one of a small handful of companies that have taken such action.
During the past year, Nokia has also continued to work hard to contribute to making a healthier, connected, sustainable planet. Nokia recently launched the industry’s first-ever liquid-cooled base station, emitting 80 percent less CO2 emissions than previous generations of products, and sought innovative ways to use its connectivity technology where it is most needed. For example, in the Philippines, the Red Cross was provided with Nokia drones and portable networks to improve first response in areas struck by disaster.
Comments on the 5G market
Nokia’s strategy is to lead in high-performance end-to-end networks for operators, expand to select vertical markets that need high-performing secure networks, build a strong standalone software business and create new licensing opportunities.
The 5G-driven spending cycle that is now building momentum supports Nokia’s end-to-end, full-portfolio strengths. Consequently, end-to-end sales as a percentage of sales pipeline are now at the highest point ever.
Nokia President and Chief Executive Officer Rajeev Suri says: “5G is not the future anymore. It is here, and Nokia is leading it. We are winning deals and rolling out some of the world’s first 5G networks. We now have 37 5G commercial contracts – 20 with named customers including T-Mobile, AT&T, STC, and Telia – and more than half of them include wider portfolio elements that our competitors cannot match. We have some amazing technology. In fact, in pretty much every network where Nokia products are deployed, we are the performance leader. This doesn’t just happen on its own. It happens because we focus on excelling in the technology that matters the most. 5G is now accelerating and the power of Nokia’s end-to-end portfolio is being recognized.”
About Nokia
We create the technology to connect the world. We develop and deliver the industry’s only end-to-end portfolio of network equipment, software, services and licensing that is available globally. Our customers include communications service providers whose combined networks support 6.1 billion subscriptions, as well as enterprises in the private and public sector that use our network portfolio to increase productivity and enrich lives.
Through our research teams, including the world-renowned Nokia Bell Labs, we are leading the world to adopt end-to-end 5G networks that are faster, more secure and capable of revolutionizing lives, economies and societies. Nokia adheres to the highest ethical business standards as we create technology with social purpose, quality and integrity. www.nokia.com
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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
It should be noted that Nokia and its businesses are exposed to various risks and uncertainties and certain statements herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect Nokia’s current expectations and views of future developments and include statements regarding: A) expectations, plans or benefits related to our strategies and growth management; B) expectations, plans or benefits related to future performance of our businesses and any expected future dividends; C) expectations and targets regarding financial performance, results, operating expenses, taxes, currency exchange rates, hedging, cost savings and competitiveness, as well as results of operations including targeted synergies and those related to market share, prices, net sales, income and margins; D) expectations, plans or benefits related to changes in organizational and operational structure; E) expectations regarding market developments, general economic conditions and structural changes; F) our ability to integrate acquired businesses into our operations and achieve the targeted business plans and benefits, including targeted benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies; G) expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or to business collaboration agreements or patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration or partnership, agreement or award; H) timing of the deliveries of our products and services, including our short term and longer term expectations around the rollout of 5G and our ability to capitalize on such rollout; and the overall readiness of the 5G ecosystem ; I) expectations and targets regarding collaboration and partnering arrangements, joint ventures or the creation of joint ventures, and the related administrative, legal, regulatory and other conditions, as well as our expected customer reach; J) outcome of pending and threatened litigation, arbitration, disputes, regulatory proceedings or investigations by authorities; K) expectations regarding restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, uses of proceeds from transactions, acquisitions and divestments and our ability to achieve the financial and operational targets set in connection with any such restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, divestments and acquisitions, including our current cost savings program; L) expectations, plans or benefits related to future capital expenditures, temporary incremental expenditures or other R&D expenditures to develop or rollout new products, including 5G; and M) statements preceded by or including “believe”, “expect”, “expectations”, “commit”, “anticipate”, “foresee”, “see”, “target”, “estimate”, “designed”, “aim”, “plan”, “intend”, “influence”, “assumption”, “focus”, “continue”, “project”, “should”, “is to”, “will” or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. These statements are based on management’s best assumptions and beliefs in light of the information currently available to it. These forward-looking statements are only predictions based upon our current expectations and views of future events and developments and are subject to risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. Factors, including risks and uncertainties that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: 1) our strategy is subject to various risks and uncertainties and we may be unable to successfully implement our strategic plans, sustain or improve the operational and financial performance of our business groups, correctly identify or successfully pursue business opportunities or otherwise grow our business; 2) general economic and market conditions and other developments in the economies where we operate, including the timeline for the deployment of 5G and our ability to successfully capitalize on that deployment; 3) competition and our ability to effectively and profitably invest in existing and new high-quality products, services, upgrades and technologies and bring them to market in a timely manner; 4) our dependence on the development of the industries in which we operate, including the cyclicality and variability of the information technology and telecommunications industries and our own R&D capabilities and investments; 5) our dependence on a limited number of customers and large multi-year agreements, as well as external events impacting our customers including mergers and acquisitions; 6) our ability to maintain our existing sources of intellectual property-related revenue through our intellectual property, including through licensing, establish new sources of revenue and protect our intellectual property from infringement; 7) our ability to manage and improve our financial and operating performance, cost savings, competitiveness and synergies generally, expectations and timing around our ability to recognize any net sales and our ability to implement changes to our organizational and operational structure efficiently; 8) our global business and exposure to regulatory, political or other developments in various countries or regions, including emerging markets and the associated risks in relation to tax matters and exchange controls, among others; 9) our ability to achieve the anticipated benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies of acquisitions, including the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent; 10) exchange rate fluctuations, as well as hedging activities; 11) our ability to successfully realize the expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or business collaboration agreements and patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration, partnership, agreement or arbitration award; 12) Nokia Technologies’ ability to protect its IPR and to maintain and establish new sources of patent, brand and technology licensing income and IPR-related revenues, particularly in the smartphone market, which may not materialize as planned, 13) our dependence on IPR technologies, including those that we have developed and those that are licensed to us, and the risk of associated IPR-related legal claims, licensing costs and restrictions on use; 14) our exposure to direct and indirect regulation, including economic or trade policies, and the reliability of our governance, internal controls and compliance processes to prevent regulatory penalties in our business or in our joint ventures; 15) our reliance on third-party solutions for data storage and service distribution, which expose us to risks relating to security, regulation and cybersecurity breaches; 16) inefficiencies, breaches, malfunctions or disruptions of information technology systems, or our customers’ security concerns; 17) our exposure to various legal frameworks regulating corruption, fraud, trade policies, and other risk areas, and the possibility of proceedings or investigations that result in fines, penalties or sanctions; 18) adverse developments with respect to customer financing or extended payment terms we provide to customers; 19) the potential complex tax issues, tax disputes and tax obligations we may face in various jurisdictions, including the risk of obligations to pay additional taxes; 20) our actual or anticipated performance, among other factors, which could reduce our ability to utilize deferred tax assets; 21) our ability to retain, motivate, develop and recruit appropriately skilled employees; 22) disruptions to our manufacturing, service creation, delivery, logistics and supply chain processes, and the risks related to our geographically-concentrated production sites; 23) the impact of litigation, arbitration, agreement-related disputes or product liability allegations associated with our business; 24) our ability to re-establish investment grade rating or maintain our credit ratings; 25) our ability to achieve targeted benefits from, or successfully implement planned transactions, as well as the liabilities related thereto; 26) our involvement in joint ventures and jointly-managed companies; 27) the carrying amount of our goodwill may not be recoverable; 28) uncertainty related to the amount of dividends and equity return we are able to distribute to shareholders for each financial period; 29) pension costs, employee fund-related costs, and healthcare costs; 30) our ability to successfully complete and capitalize on our order backlogs and continue converting our sales pipeline into net sales; and 31) risks related to undersea infrastructure, as well as the risk factors specified on pages 60 to 75 of our 2018 annual report on Form 20-F published on March 21, 2019 under “Operating and financial review and prospects-Risk factors” and in our other filings or documents furnished with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying assumptions subsequently proven to be incorrect could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.
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