Nokia Aims At Nation-Wide Coverage For Nokia Money

The world's largest handset maker Nokia that has been facing a double whammy in India as competitors eat out its market share in both low priced and high end smartphone segments, is looking to boost its ancillary services business. It is now aiming at a nation-wide coverage for Nokia Money, a mobile payment service which enables consumers to pay directly from their Nokia mobile phones in India according to The Economic Times.

"We are now planning for a pan India coverage for our Nokia Money this year," said Gerhard Romen, Nokia Mobile Financial Services Director. According to Gerhard, the e-wallet services are currently available in Mumbai, Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), Nasik, Pune, Chennai and Chandigarh. The company is also planning to initiate its operations in Surat, Baroda, Rajkot, Lucknow, Kanpur, Kochi and Kozhikode.

An e-wallet works in the same manner as a physical wallet and allows the users to make electronic transactions in exchange for products or services without the use of hard cash.

"Earlier people were shocked to think that your phone could have a camera, but now everyone uses a camera phone. Similarly in a couple of years it will be a wallet in your phone," said Gerhard.

Nokia already has a tie-up with banks like Yes Bank and Union Bank of India for the e-wallet facility and is considering tie-ups with other banks also. "We are still discussing with other banks for the facility, but I cannot give you any names at this time," he said.

Earlier this year Nokia had dismantled its Ovi brand and announced that the name Ovi will be removed and the services will be re-branded as Nokia Services. The company also reached the half a billion mark in India this year in terms of devices manufactured in its Chennai plant.