GLOBAL – “We just put it up there, and more than a quarter of a million people signed up”. So said Purnima Kochikar, director of consumer messaging at Nokia, in a speech to developers this morning at the Nokia Developer Summit in Monaco. And that’s just in four months, with little or no marketing behind the service.
Ovi Mail is designed as a consumer email service where the users don’t need to access a PC to set up an account – the whole thing can be done right there on the device. And it shows too, as the service was designed mostly for those of us who don’t have ready access to a computer, and aims to help the other part of the world to get online and connected. The result? 10 of the top 12 countries using the service are emerging markets.
This is a brilliant boost for Ovi Mail and highlights, for me at least, the relevance of such a service. Of course, 250,000 people is just the beginning, and I’m sure the numbers will continue to grow strong, but isn’t it encouraging?
The service was originally launched in December and a new version released earlier this month. It includes 1GB of free storage, a simple interface and of course full mobile access. It also comes with fully featured spam and virus protection. If you haven’t seen it in action, check out the video below from Nokia BetaLabs.