Nokia to license SD memory cards

Nokia has signed a licensing deal to allow it to use SD memory cards in future devices, and has applied for membership of the SD Card Association.

The company said that the cards will be a valuable add-on because the removal storage medium has gained widespread acceptance for mobile phones, digital cameras, camcorders, PDAs, printers, PCs, TV sets and other home electronics.

Nokia also plans to continue to support MultiMediaCards (MMC), which are widely used in its existing devices.

The decision to participate in the SD Card Association will help in specifying SD cards that are optimised for Nokia mobile devices, the company claimed.

"Both SD and MMC cards will feature as significant components in our products now and in the future," said Timo Poikolainen, vice president of technology marketing at Nokia, in a statement.

He added that SD cards have good worldwide availability, and that customers are increasingly demanding the technology in mobile devices.

"With mobile devices driving the ongoing digital convergence, the demand for memory capacity multiplies to enable extensive storage of digital content in mobile devices," said Poikolainen.

"Therefore, we aim to ensure that the needs of the mobile device industry will be met in the development of future SD card standards."