The last 12 months has seen an increasing number of businesses looking to unlock the potential of YouTube as views are soaring by the millions. The most recent firm to have done this is Nokia, who I do believe were in discussions about it for an awfully long stretch of time. Knowing Nokia as well as I do there is no doubt that the lengthy decision making process was not so much because of their inability to decide whether or not it was a good idea, but rather their level of perfectionism and the desire to get it just right. Nokia may have been knocked off their perch of late in terms of the products which they are coming out with but they are still al eating light in many sectors and that is why I am genuinely excited by what they will be producing on the video sharing site.
I will preface this piece with a quote from Alastair Curtis, the chief designer at Nokia who was discussing the company’s YouTube channel and their exciting new N-Gage system.
“Design is undoubtedly a key, defining issue in our industry. This is only set to increase over the coming years as we see people demanding mobile devices that more closely match their lifestyle.”
“As designers we have to be constantly looking ahead, predicting how these trends will develop and provoking new ideas. Making these videos public and sharing some of this thinking with the people who use our phones will help us do this.”
As we can see here it is clear that Nokia are looking at a multi-channel strategy which will be finely threaded together two give their customers the very best experience.
I would go out on a limb to say that the YouTube channel which Nokia are creating will be initially used as a litmus test for a range of ideas and designs which are bubbling away in the creative corner of the company. Nokia know only too well just how great a part YouTube can play in testing the waters and seeing what kind of traction their ideas get. Given the recent downturn that the electronics giant have had, it is very much a case of back to the drawing board and that throws up a wealth of ideas which they may wish to proceed with, YouTube will be a big indicator as to which work, and which don’t, as we know too well, YouTube commenters will let you know straight off the bat what they think.
Nokia are making something of a bold move here given that so many companies of their ilk prefer to keep a low profile and only come out swinging when there is a product to launch or some hype to stir up. I for one however am in full support of what Nokia are looking to do and I hope that they get great success from this new venture.
