Today, Nokia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the MSAMB. Under this MOU, MSAMB will provide expertise in the areas of commodity prices from their network of 291 local mandis (marketyards). MSAMB will also have the opportunity to deliver relevant news, alerts on schemes and other information directly to grassroots consumers.

Nokia Life Tools has a range of 3 primary services – Agriculture Services, Education Services and Entertainment Services. The complete Nokia Life Tools solution will be available on the newly launched Nokia 2323 classic and Nokia 2330 classic devices, and will be later expanded to other Nokia devices.

Nokia Life Tools Agriculture services:

The Nokia Life Tools Agriculture service offers consumers a choice of 2 plans. The basic plan, available across India at Rs 30/month, provides daily weather updates and relevant agriculture-related news, advice and tips. The premium plan, at Rs 60/month, will be available in 10 states, including Maharashtra, and provides the closest market prices for three crops chosen by the subscriber, as well as weather, news, advice and tips.

Nokia is collaborating with Reuters Market Light (RML), which was the exclusive provider for agriculture services in the successful pilot. Syngenta, Madison Research, Skymet and many others also form this ecosystem.

Nokia Life Tools Education services:

The Nokia Life Tools Education service, available throughout India, offers three components: Learn English, with basic, intermediate and advanced levels; Exam preparation, which offers students tips and advice for ICSE, CBSE and State Board-level exams mapped to the relevant curriculum; and General Knowledge, which gives subscribers useful information about the world around them. Each of the Education services will be offered at Rs 30/month. Information and content from multiple local and international companies will be aggregated and delivered to Nokia Life Tools by EnableM.

Nokia Life Tools Entertainment services:

The Nokia Life Tools Entertainment service at launch will include Astrology, News, Jokes, Cricket and ringtones, offered at existing market prices. The content is aggregated and brought to Life Tools by OnMobile.

Nokia Life Tools service will be expanded to select countries across Asia and Africa later in 2009 and beyond.

Users of the Agriculture Service described that they were better informed about market rates for their produce. Farmers found that getting prices daily on their mobile phones reduced their dependency on agents for basic information. Now with greater awareness on market conditions, there was newfound confidence in their negotiations with the agents. There was also resounding appreciation for the time and money saved from not having to make multiple trips to the market place to get the latest rates.

“I believe in working rigorously to enhance my livelihood and lifestyle and I expect that Nokia Life Tools services will help me in validating the desired information,” said a farmer and trader from Tuljapur, Amravati.

Benefitting from the Agriculture service also related to having advanced information about weather, news and crop advisory services like information about probable diseases, weather based disruptions and tips for more successful harvests. Farmers could plan labour, sowing, harvesting and selling better, and with more predictable results than they were able to before they started using Life Tools.

A 25-year-old second-year Master of Arts student in Hindi, who is also a trader and owns an electronics repair and CD shop, said: “Nokia Life Tools has given me many directions that I can take related to my education, agriculture business and my overall individual status. It has the potential to change my future.”

The pilot program of Nokia Life Tools in India was launched in December 2008, with services in Agriculture, Learn English, General Knowledge and Astrology. During the pilot period, buyers of the Nokia 2600 classic or the Nokia 1680 classic – which came enabled with the service – had the option to purchase subscriptions to the Nokia Life Tools services that were most relevant to them. Results showed that a significant number of subscribers had signed up for approximately two of the services on average, reflecting that the services were relevant to a wide cross-section of the society.