諾基亞週三推新手機 CEO迎來重要考驗

When Nokia Corp. launches a new series of devices running Microsoft Corp.'s new Windows 8 software, Chief Executive Stephen Elop wants to send a clear message: 'We have clearly put our best efforts, our best engineering, best innovation and intellectual property into these products.'

當諾基亞公司(Nokia Corp.)發佈搭載微軟公司(Microsoft Corp.)操作系統Windows 8的系列新手機之際，諾基亞首席執行長埃洛普(Stephen Elop)希望傳達出的明確信號是：顯然我們對這些產品盡了全力，投入了最優秀的技術人員、最棒的創新和知識產權。

With the claim, Mr. Elop is betting the Finnish company can again put out products that once made it the dominant handset maker in the world. 'Some of the things you'll see [Wednesday] you'll look at and say 'wow, this has clearly been years in the making, it's wonderful work - this is the thing that Nokia has always been known for.'

埃洛普這樣講其實是在打賭，賭這家芬蘭公司可以再次推出曾一度使其主導全球手機市場的產品。他說，你們將在週三看到部分產品，並且驚歎道：哇哦，這顯然是醞釀多年的結晶，太棒了！而這正是諾基亞成名的根本所在。

The comments, made during an interview Tuesday in New York, come at a time when the market has become deeply skeptical about Nokia's prospects. Losses have mounted under Mr. Elop's watch, and credit ratings have been dumped to junk status. Nokia's market cap is now just $10.5 billion, with shares trading 70% lower than they did when he took the helm.

埃洛普是週二在紐約接受採訪時說的上述這番話，而此時市場對諾基亞的前景已深感懷疑。諾基亞在埃洛普的掌管之下虧損不斷擴大，信用評級已降至垃圾級，公司市值目前也僅爲105億美元。與埃洛普接手諾基亞時相比，該公司股票已大跌了70%。

With Mr. Elop's two-year anniversary at the helm approaching, his most recently launched smartphones - the so-called Lumia series - have yet to attract the desired interest from consumers. Now, Nokia also faces the prospect of greater competition from rival Samsung Electronics Co., which surprised the industry by slipping ahead of Nokia last week and announcing its own Windows 8 phone.

埃洛普出任諾基亞首席執行長已快兩年，而該公司最新發布的Lumia系列智能手機所吸引到的消費者關注還沒有達到預期目標。如今，諾基亞面臨着與對手三星電子(Samsung Electronics Co.)競爭加劇的前景。上週，三星電子趕在諾基亞之前推出了自己的Windows 8手機，令業界頗感意外。

Mr. Elop dismissed the threat from Samsung, saying the South Korean company threw in a Windows phone at the end of a series of announcements, demonstrating a lack of commitment to the Microsoft platform.

埃洛普似乎並不在意來自三星電子的威脅。他說，這家韓國公司是在發佈了一系列產品之後才拋出Windows手機，這表明他們並沒有嚴肅對待這個微軟操作平臺。

But Mr. Elop says that the full force of Nokia's R&D has been poured into the new Windows 8 phones. 'That sends a very different message' than Samsung's.

埃洛普說，諾基亞對自己的Windows 8新手機投入了全部研發力量。他說：從這一點上看，我們傳達出了與三星電子完全不同的信息。

Samsung didn't respond immediately to a request for comment.

三星電子沒有立即回覆置評要求。

Nokia once led the handset market but has failed to keep up with phones built by Apple Inc. or powered by Google Inc.'s Android software. Earlier this year, Samsung replaced Nokia as the world's top seller of mobile phones.

諾基亞曾是手機市場的領跑者，但在蘋果公司(Apple Inc.)的iPhone以及搭載谷歌(Google Inc.)操作系統安卓(Android)的其它手機問世後，諾基亞被競爭對手甩到了後面。今年早些時候，三星電子取代諾基亞，成爲全球排名第一的手機銷售商。

The phones to be introduced on Wednesday are the second generation of Windows devices for Nokia. Investors, particularly on Nokia's home turf, are growing restless with the slow-moving turnaround and will be closely watching to see if the new phones catch on in the marketplace.

諾基亞將於週三推出的手機是該公司第二代Windows手機產品。投資者（特別是芬蘭國內投資者）對於諾基亞遲遲未能扭轉局面越來越焦躁不安，他們將密切關注該公司本次推出的新手機是否能獲得市場青睞。

'Most of our 10,000 members own Nokia shares, and there is a lot of disappointment with the company and its management,' said Timo Rothovius, chairman of Finland's Shareholders Association for small investors. 'People are especially disappointed with Stephen Elop.'

芬蘭股東聯合會(Finland's Shareholders Association)主席羅斯維爾斯(Timo Rothovius)說：我們共有1萬名會員，其中絕大多數都持有諾基亞股票，他們對於該公司及其管理層都有很多不滿，對埃洛普尤其失望。

If the new phones don't sell, Mr. Rothovius said his group will push for Mr. Elop's removal.

羅斯維爾斯說，如果諾基亞這次推出的新手機賣得不好，芬蘭股東聯合會將力主讓埃洛普下臺。

Finns owned 24% of Nokia's total shares at the end of June this year, up from 16% before Mr. Elop announced his new strategy in early 2011.

截至今年6月底，芬蘭投資者持有諾基亞24%的股份，而埃洛普2011年初宣佈新戰略之前，這個比例是16%。

The value of those shares has taken a beating, losing nearly three-quarters of their value since Mr. Elop took over in September 2010. The company has piled up billions of losses, and its credit rating has been slashed to junk status.

自2010年9月埃洛普上任以來，諾基亞股票的市值遭遇重創，大跌了近四分之三。諾基亞已出現了數十億美元虧損，信用評級也被下調至垃圾級。

Mr. Elop joined a company that was failing to compete in the smartphone market and which had grown bloated and slow. The move to team up with Microsoft was designed to get new smartphones to market quickly, which Mr. Elop accomplished in under a year.

埃洛普加盟諾基亞時，這個公司已從智能手機市場的競爭中敗下陣來，機構組織臃腫不堪，公司增長緩慢。而諾基亞之所以與微軟聯手，本意就是將新智能手機迅速推向市場，這個目標埃洛普已在一年內實現。

'One can't blame Mr. Elop for the difficult task he has had to carry through,' said Christian Elfving, director of the Sigrid Juselius Foundation - which owns a 0.2% stake in Nokia. 'Many of the measures have been unpleasant, but they also have been absolutely necessary.'

基金會Sigrid Juselius Foundation的董事埃爾夫文(Christian Elfving)說，不能因爲埃洛普必須完成的這項艱難任務而責備他，雖然他採取的很多措施都令人不快，但卻是絕對有必要採取的。該基金會持有諾基亞0.2%的股份。