Struggling firm offloading "non-core assets", but sells Qt for a fraction of what it paid.
Nokia has sold its Qt software business to Finnish IT company Digia.
The move is part of the struggling mobile phone maker's programme of selling off “non-core assets”.
Nokia bought the Qt software through its acquisition of Norway's Trolltech and it was a central part of its strategy until 2011, when Nokia decided to swap its own smartphone software for Microsoft's.
Nokia didn’t disclose the details of the sale, but said it sold Qt for a “fraction” of the $150 million it originally paid for the platform.
Qt was originally a big part of Nokia's plans, playing a lead role in transitioning the company's mobile devices from Symbian operating systems to platforms like MeeGo.
Qt also offered an effective means of taking applications to Android. Walking away can be interpreted as a sign that Nokia plans to focus even more exclusively on Windows Phone.
Digia said that it will carry on work on Qt 5, and will keep the software available as both open source and licensed releases.
As a cool side note, Qt was the platform NASA used for the Curiosity rover.
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