On 18 May 2017, Nokia first announced the strategic agreement covering branding rights and intellectual property licensing with HMD Global. Later, on 1 December, the completion of transactions between HMD, FIH Mobile Limited and Microsoft officially completed. Soon after the transfer of rights, the reborn Nokia made a solid comeback with it’s first Android phone — the Nokia 6, followed by six other Android phones phones out of which, five made it to India.
Is it for India?
Building on its interest in the Indian market, HMD Global has acquired the trademark for the (in India) Nokia “Asha” label. The “Asha” label was acquired through the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The trademark was transferred to HMD Global on 10 January, 2018.
The trademark mentions that the brand label can be used for "computer software platform used in mobile telephones and smartphones; mobile phones and smartphones", and "wireless communication services namely for computer software used in mobile telephones and smartphones".
This hints at Nokia’s strategy to relaunch the “Asha” series as smartphones, but not feature phones anymore. Although we can expect the label to be used to make affordable phones, Nokia could also use the Asha brand as low-cost phones running Android Oreo (Go Edition).
Moreover, a recent report tipped that HMD Global might launch a new affordable Nokia 1 smartphone running on Android Oreo (Go Edition). Android Go is a toned down version of Android Oreo, which enables users to experience stutter-free experience even on low-grade hardware.
