CES: Nokia talks up business in the developing world

LAS VEGAS--Nokia President and CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo is just taking the keynote stage at CES Friday to discuss the company's strategy for reaching the world's developing markets with its products.

Update at 9:15 a.m. PST: Nokia is the world's leader in cell phones. And while the company has struggled over the past year to hold its dominance in the high-end market, it clearly dominates the emerging market with low-cost phones tailored to the millions of customers who live on less than $1 a day.

Kallasvuo started by showing off the company's first-ever cell phone, the Mobira Cityman. The big brick phone went on sale in 1987. He compared that device to a tiny phone that is being sold today to the developing world.

This new phone sends text messages, makes phone calls, and has an appointment calendar. But it also has a flashlight, a long-life battery, and FM radio. From farmers in India to fisherman in Indonesia, Kallasvuo said cell phones have quickly become a necessity. These devices are sold for about $32, a 300 percent drop in price in the past five years.