I find it telling that Fingersoft and Rovio were founded by kids fresh out of Finnish universities. Supercell founder Ilkka Paananen ran a couple of less successful gaming studios before starting Supercell, but got started in the industry while still a student. The leaders and chief developers in all three companies remain Finnish, so it’s not as if the industry (nor Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK)) acted as a magnet for overseas talent. And don’t forget that the Linux operating system, which happens to form the base for Android phones and a myriad other gadgets, was a hobby project for Finnish computer-science student Linus Torvalds. And Linux was born in 1991, just months after Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) had decided to sell off its rubber, cable, and consumer electronics divisions to double down on mobility. It’s hard to call the burgeoning Finnish game industry a direct byproduct of Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK), even if the company definitely had a hand in motivating local kids to pursue that field. Rather, it’s the logical conclusion when you install a brilliant educational system, step back, and watch where a generation of well-rounded and highly educated kids decide to go next. And I suppose it doesn’t hurt to have all these long, dark winters to fill with entertainment. Paananen told Gamasutra that those dark months bred a tradition of strong storytelling, and game design is just the next step in that evolution. “This kind of creativity has been in our culture for a very long time,” he said. “It’s a combination of that, plus the engineering talent, which I think makes the games industry so great here.” And there you have it. The circle of life takes another turn Ironically, the same smartphone trends that are elevating this new class of Finnish businesses is also killing the old king. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) started a wholesale revolution with the first iPhone, paving the way for Android to popularize smartphones. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iOS remains the master of mobile profits even as Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s bevy of allies dominates sales volumes. That one-two punch is destroying Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK), which got on the smartphone train a day late and a dollar short. Looking at smartphone top-seller charts today, Nokia’s products are nowhere to be found. If the former global giant goes belly-up, it will most definitely release a plethora of engineering talent into the Finnish job market — where they can start something fresh or join the rising mobile-game army. The article The Surprising Small Country That’s Dominating Mobile Video Games originally appeared on Fool.com is written by Anders Bylund. Fool contributor Anders Bylund owns shares of Google, but he holds no other position in any company mentioned. Check out Anders’ bio and holdings, or follow him on Twitter and Google+.The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Apple and Google. Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
