Nokia puts Java on 100 million mobiles

Nokia plans to install Java on 100 million phones in the next two years, targeting consumers in the US with a major sales push.

Pekka Ala-Pietila, president of Nokia, told the JavaOne Developers Conference in San Francisco that the company expects to ship 50 million Java enabled mobiles by the end of the year, with the 100 million mark hit by the end of 2003.

It was a call to action for the 17,000 developers attending the conference as Nokia is struggling to develop enough Java applications to pull in the users.

Tony Lock, senior analyst at Bloor Research, said: "There's been a lot of news about Java. It's becoming more and more the accepted standard. If it takes off in the US and builds the volume, the mobile market will change again.

"With 3G coming, we'll be able to do anything we like on a phone," Lock added.

Nokia is also launching a US version of its Communicator, the 9290, incorporating PersonalJava, which the company claims will allow "any number of third-party solutions".

Only three million Java mobiles are estimated to have been sold in the US - mostly using J2ME.