Nokia said it will not meet its 2023 financial targets because it is unable to recognize the revenue it will earn from license renewal discussions that are expected to continue into next year.
The Finnish telecoms equipment group said its full-year outlook depends on the closing of pending license renewals at its technology unit Nokia Technologies.
Nokia did not provide information about the nature of these licenses and the parties with which it is in talks to renew them. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Nokia said it does not expect negotiations to conclude before the end of the year, and now expects a solution to be reached in 2024, which will benefit its financial results next year.
Nokia's patent portfolio is based on more than €140 billion invested in R&D and consists of approximately 20,000 patents, including more than 5,500 announced patents essential for 5G networks.
Read: Nokia intends to lay off 14,000 employees after a decline in profits
Earlier this year, Nokia signed a new long-term patent licensing agreement with Apple, with the current license between the two companies expiring at the end of 2023.
Slowing sales of 5G equipment in key markets such as North America have also led to a decline in the company's profit margins.
Nokia, which reported a 20% decline in third-quarter sales, said it may miss full-year targets for net sales, comparable operating margin and free cash flow.
Net sales from the network business are expected to show significant sequential improvement in the fourth quarter, it added. It is scheduled to announce its quarterly and annual results on January 25.
In October, the networking equipment maker cut up to 14,000 jobs to cut costs, but at the time did not change its forecast for the full year.
Nokia expects net sales for 2023 to range between 23.2 billion euros and 24.6 billion euros. Its goal is to save between 800 and 1.2 billion euros between now and 2026.
With information from Reuters
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