Last year, Nokia purchased media-sharing start Twango, located in Redmond. Nokia purchased the startup as a base to expand its presence in Seattle. Nokia has now taken this intention to the next level.

On Thursday, 5/1/08, Nokia disclosed plans for a major research and development facility opening this summer in Kirkland in the re-modeled Park Place shopping center complex.  The facility houses 25,000 square feet of office space and can support up to 125 employees.

Serena Glover, Director of Entertainment and Communications at Nokia and a Twango co-founder , is quoted as saying “This is going to be a Nokia world-class facility.” Glover is now leading a group of 51 developers online creating Ovi, an online portal that will be a key new feature of the Nokia N78. Ovi will feature online entertainment and community services.

Nokia’s huge user base and its powerful technology for storing and sharing digital content on mobile devices are among the company’s strengths in this arena, and is sure to propel the N78 - and Ovi - into the future of mobile entertainment.

The upcoming Nokia N78 will also be the first US cellphone to feature a Twango-developed photo-sharing application preloaded on the cellphone.