Sega Sells Online Gaming Unit To Nokia

By Agence France-Presse Tokyo-based Sega Corp. will sell its online gaming unit to mobile phone giant Nokia Corp. before the launch of the Finnish firm's N-Gage game deck and cell phone next month, the companies said Aug. 20. The transfer of the division of subsidiary Sega.com Inc. that had developed multiplayer online gaming technology would help the N-Gage's debut, they said. "Sega.com Inc. has developed a robust technology platform which, combined with the Nokia N-Gage game deck, opens up totally new dimensions for gamers," said Nokia Senior Vice President Ilkka Raiskinen in a statement. Nokia is headquartered in Espoo, Finland. No price was put on the deal, which will move some of Sega.com's 51 employees to Nokia. The N-Gage, a two-handed mobile game console that also acts as a phone, is slated to begin sales in North America, Europe and Asia on Oct. 7 for about $299, with games priced between $20 and $30. The gadget will initially be sold only in countries with the global system for mobile communications (GSM) standard, which does not include Japan. Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2003