Nokia welcomes iPhone

Nokia is reported to have said that it is welcoming the launch of Apple's iPhone this year rather than announce that the launch by the computer company is likely to damage sales.

In a move that might be just a double bluff, Nokia's chief financial officer Rick Simonson told the Reuters news agency that the release of the iPhone was a merely expanding the market - bring more people to the smartphone arena, while at the same time giving users the chance of a high-end mobile choice.

"The iPhone is interesting. It's very much a validation of what we've been doing, in terms of saying there is a multimedia device out there that people will pay for", he said, according to Reuters.

"Don't get me wrong, they will bring some things to the table that we have to be responsive to, but we have been investing in this area or some time", he said.