mocoNews reports that Nokia is about to buy Canadian mobile IM, e-mail and social networking vendor OZ Communications. If true, the move would be the latest social media and communication acquisition by the Finnish handset manufacturer in the last two years, following deals with the likes of Loudeye, Twango, Enpocket, Plazes and Navteq. Nokia’s Internet services strategy is focused on key service areas such as music, games, messaging and location-based services. Last month it announced a company reorganisation to focus on Internet services and has been pushing heavily its music strategy – known as Comes with Music – and its ‘Ovi’ mobile Internet portal.

In Europe alone, OZ has customer deployments at 3 Denmark, 3 Sweden, TDC, Telenor Norway and Telenor Sweden. In addition, the vendor yesterday announced a deal with T-Mobile’s German and UK operations. Other customers include Verizon Wireless, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, Alltel and Rogers Wireless. Meanwhile, in separate Nokia developments, the company announced this week that its CTO, Bob Iannucci, has resigned with immediate effect, for personal reasons. Cellular News also reports today that the company is in advanced talks to sell its security-appliances business to a financial investor as it concentrates on consumer Internet services. The report added it plans to stop developing its behind-the-firewall business mobility solutions and instead will seek to use applications from such software companies as Microsoft, IBM and Cisco on its devices.