Nokia’s assumption of control over Symbian is a positive move for investors.  Nokia is already the world’s largest handset manufacturer in the world.  Symbian is a long time and leading handset software company; specifically smart phones.

Symbian supplies software for most of the smart phones in the world.  Nokia’s actions should be applauded because they are taking the fight for market control and dominance right to all of the handset manufacturers.

Stock brokers are attempting to position this as a Nokia versus Apple fight.  However, Apple is nothing compared to Nokia.  Nokia is playing this on a market wide and long term basis.  Nokia is going to war with all handset manufacturers.

Rather than sitting back and letting everyone come after Nokia, Nokia is going after everyone first.  Brilliant strategy.

Nokia’s Symbian Foundation will become the entity holding all of Symbian’s software code.  Even better, Motorola(NYS:MOT), NTT DoCoMo(NYS:DCM), MOAP, AT&T, LG, and Ericsson(NYS:VOD)(NAS:ERIC) will be working with Nokia through the foundation.  It is along the same lines as Google’s(NMS:GOOG) Android, however, Google is a service provider not a manufacturer.  Further, Google is starting from scratch.  What’s remarkable about this event is that a manufacturer is leading the charge.

Nokia’s actions are brilliant because by effectively opening the Symbian platform up for external development, Nokia will be able to sell a truckload of even more handsets and a ton of services.

Since Apple’s iPhone does not contain any unique intellectual property controlled by Apple, Apple will be forced into a defensive posture and have to develop 3G applications of its own.  If I were Apple, I begin worrying about its relationship with AT&T, because AT&T is working with Nokia.

By establishing an open development environment, Nokia can position its smart phones as low cost devices.  Nokia will make up for the lower margins via volume selling.

The handset business has always been a difficult place to make money.  You have to sell large volumes of devices because the margins are low.  There is constant investment in device enhancement.  Nokia has turned the handset business’ biggest issues into advantages for itself.

Smart move.