Francisco De Jesùs.
Nokia has completed the sale of substantially all of its mobile phones
business to Microsoft. The transaction, which also includes an agreement
to license patents to Microsoft, was first announced in September 2013.
At closing, the price was adjusted somewhat in Nokia's favour and is
expected to be slightly higher than the earlier-announced EUR 5.44
billion, Nokia said.
The final deal also excludes Nokia's manufacturing facilities in
Chennai in India and Masan in Korea. The Indian site remains subject to a
tax dispute with the local authorities. Nokia has agreed to continue to
provide Microsoft with devices from the site until the dispute is
resolved and the assets can be transferred. For the Korean facility,
which employs around 200 people, Nokia plans to end the activities.
As part of the sale, Nokia executives Stephen Elop, Jo Harlow, Juha
Putkiranta, Timo Toikkanen and Chris Weber will be transferring to
Microsoft, as well as another 25,000 Nokia employees. Elop will head the
mobile business at Microsoft, along with its Xbox games console and
Surface tablet.
Nokia said it plans a board meeting next week to consider its future
strategy, and more details will be discussed at its quarterly report on April 29 Nokia
Press Release:
Nokia completes sale of substantially all of its Devices & Services business to Microsoft
Nokia Corporation
Stock exchange release
April 25, 2014 at 13.55 (CET +1)
Espoo, Finland - Nokia today announced that it has completed the sale of substantially all of its Devices & Services business to Microsoft.
The transaction, which also includes an agreement to license patents to Microsoft, was originally announced on September 3, 2013.
As earlier communicated, the transaction was subject to potential purchase price adjustments. The estimate of the adjustments made for net working capital and cash earnings was slightly positive for Nokia, and we currently expect the total transaction price to be slightly higher than the earlier-announced transaction price of EUR 5.44 billion after the final adjustments are made based on the verified closing balance sheet.
Additionally, as is customary for transactions of this size, scale and complexity, Nokia and Microsoft made certain adjustments to the scope of the assets originally planned to transfer. These adjustments included Nokia's manufacturing facilities in Chennai in India and Masan in the Republic of Korea not transferring to Microsoft. These adjustments have no impact on the material deal terms of the transaction and Nokia will be materially compensated for any retained liabilities.
In India, our manufacturing facility is subject to an asset freeze by the Indian tax authorities as a result of ongoing tax proceedings. Consequently, the facility remains part of Nokia following the closing of the transaction. Nokia and Microsoft have entered into a service agreement whereby Nokia would produce mobile devices for Microsoft.
In Korea, Nokia and Microsoft agreed to exclude the Masan facility from the scope of the transaction. Nokia will now take steps to close the facility, which employs approximately 200 people.
Amid the uncertainty for our employees in Chennai and because of the planned closure of our facility in Masan, Nokia plans to offer a program of support, including financial assistance which would give our employees the chance to explore opportunities outside Nokia starting from a sound financial base. The company plans to bring to Chennai and Masan elements of its Bridge program, which we have made available for employees affected by company changes in other sites.
The convertible bonds issued by Nokia to Microsoft following the announcement of the transaction have been redeemed and netted against the deal proceeds by the amount of principal and accrued interest.
As previously announced, the following Nokia leaders have stepped down from the Nokia Leadership Team and transferred to Microsoft at closing, effective April 25, 2014: Stephen Elop, Jo Harlow, Juha Putkiranta, Timo Toikkanen, and Chris Weber. Until further notice, Nokia's interim governance model announced on September 3, 2013 is in place.
Nokia plans to cover in further detail aspects of the closing of the transaction in conjunction with its first quarter 2014 results announcement on April 29, 2014.
Now that the closing of this transaction has taken place, Nokia is arranging a Board of Directors meeting for early next week in relation to its strategy assessment which was originally disclosed on September 3, 2013.
Nokia Lumia 2520 Quad Core Ultra Thin 0.35-in Full HD 1920x1080 4G LTE Tablet, Black (Verizon Wireless No Contract) 2GB 32GB
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