Nokia signs patent-licensing deal with BlackBerry maker RIM

OAKLAND: Nokia, the Finnish mobile-phone maker struggling to reverse a slide in sales, agreed to a patent-licensing deal with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM), ending all legal disputes between the companies. RIM will make a one-time and "ongoing" payments to Nokia, the Espoo, Finland-based company said. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

Nokia is trying to add revenue from its patent portfolio as sales at its unprofitable smartphone unit drop. It may get a one-time payment of $150 million to $200 million, and about $50 million annually over the next 10 to 15 years, depending on when the patents expire, according to estimates by Hannu Rauhala, an analyst at Pohjola Bank Oyj in Helsinki.

Nokia has sold units and assets including its headquarters to boost its cash position. Its cash reserves have shrunk by about half in the past five years and will drop below 3 billion euros by year-end, Standard & Poor's estimated in August.