Nokia to cut 10,000 jobs and reshuffle management team

Ailing phone maker deepens cuts and offloads luxury phone brand

Embattled phone maker Nokia is axing 10,000 jobs over the next year and reshuffling its management board in another attempt to gain ground in the smartphone market against Apple and Samsung.

The Finnish firm said it would close its research facilities in Ulm, Germany, Burnaby, Canada and its manufacturing facilities in Salo, Finland.

It expects the 10,000 job losses, site closures and various streamlining initiatives to deliver €3bn in savings by 2013.

"We do not make plans that may impact our employees lightly, and as a company we will work tirelessly to ensure that those at risk are offered the support, options and advice necessary to find new opportunities," said Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop.

Earlier this year, Nokia announced it would cut 4,000 jobs by closing various facilities in Mexico, Hungary and Finland.

Among those paying the price for the firms continuing struggles are marketing chief Jerri DeVard, who only joined the firm a year ago and executive vice president of its mobile phones division, Mary McDowell.

Also on the way out is 16-year company veteran, Niklas Savander, executive vice president of markets.

Nokia also confirmed it had found a buyer for its luxury phone brand, Vertu. It will sell the unit to private equity group EQT for an undisclosed fee, while retaining a 10 per cent minority stake.

It had originally hoped to raise €200m by selling the Vertu unit.

The firm has also pushed ahead with its strategy of betting the firm on its Lumia range of Windows Phone-powered handsets, with the acquisition of intellectual property and staff from Swedish imaging firm Scalado.

While financial terms were not revealed, the acquisition would help Nokia differentiate its Lumia handsets through the quality of its in-built cameras.

"This transaction would enable us to combine our leadership in camera devices with their expertise in imaging, helping people move beyond taking pictures to capturing moments and emotions and then reliving them in many different ways," said Jo Harlow, executive vice president of smart devices at Nokia.

Early reaction to Nokia's Lumia handsets has been muted, with sluggish sales of the devices.

Nevertheless, the firm has been able to generate some buzz around devices such as its PureView camera technology, which boasts an eye-popping 41MP sensor.