Looks like ST-Ericsson will be supplying its technology in the form of chipsets to Nokia, which will enable the cellphone vendor to offer cheaper Windows mobiles. As soon as the news came out, shares of both STMicro and Ericsson went up by 4 percent and 3 percent respectively.

“ST-Ericsson have been clear about their intention to become a major supplier to Windows Phone licensees. This is an important validation of their ability to deliver,” said analyst John Jackson from CCS Insight. But he was also cautious. Of course being named as a supplier does not automatically translate to a volume opportunity. The Windows Phone 7 market is in its infancy,” he added.

While this breaks Qualcomm’s monopoly over Microsoft’s mobile platform, this is a positive sign for Nokia as well. The Finnish company will now be able to offer some affordable Windows phones to its audience. Just last week, Nokia presented its first two smartphone models using Microsoft software, namely the Lumia 800 and Lumia 710.

Though the ST-Ericsson deal is good news for Nokia, we are also hearing some not-so-good news for the cellphone maker. It could be facing a strike by YTN Union members, expected to kick off anytime now.  And because more than 80 percent of Nokia staff are members of YTN, the strike would have an impact on Nokia operations as well.

“Around 10,000 YTN members, mostly in managerial and specialist jobs, started a strike on Nov 1 at 40 firms after talks on a new wage deal collapsed. The strike will expand to include Nokia if a deal is not reached before Nov 7, a union official said.”

Most of these members are working for Research and Development as well as management, and do not include workers assembling mobile phones at its Salo factory. Let’s just wait and see how this situation turns up, and how it will affect the mobile sector.