Today in the second day of Nokia World, Nokia went ahead and announced that they’ll be opening up to developers with the release of the Ovi Maps API and Ovi SDK.

Straight from the Press Release :

Nokia expands ecosystem opportunities and showcases work with partners, publishers and developers

September 03, 2009

Nokia makes it easier for web publishers and developers to create applications with integrated services with Ovi APIs and Ovi SDK Beta introducing a new breed of applications for the web and smartphone platforms

Stuttgart, Germany – Nokia today made it easier for web publishers and developers to create applications with integrated services and native-like user interfaces, quickly and with less effort with new Ovi APIs and the Ovi SDK Beta. Announced at its annual Nokia World conference, the company said it will progressively roll out web and mobile APIs for its services, beginning with the Ovi Maps Player API and the Ovi Navigation Player API for cutting-edge location solutions on its smartphones. The company also hosted a keynote from Henri Moissinac, Director of Mobile, Facebook, highlighting the opportunities in mobile social networking and the close collaboration between the two companies.

“This is just the beginning. We will work in close cooperation with developers to evolve the offering, starting with social location solutions,” said Niklas Savander, EVP, Services, Nokia. “Our goal is clear, and that is to make it effortless for our partners to create highly appealing, context-relevant applications that consumers will find indispensable.”

Nokia has already been working with key partners such as Lonely Planet, Deutsche Bahn, Associated Press, Qype, National Geographic, Deutsche Telekom Medien and Langenscheidt to create example applications using the Ovi SDK Beta and Ovi APIs (Click http://events.nokia.com/nokiaworld to see the Ovi SDK video).

Web partner discusses developing with Nokia


“We’ve been very pleased with our relationship with Nokia,” said Henri Moissinac, Director of Mobile, Facebook. “Since its release in June, the Facebook application for Nokia is available for download in more than 150 countries and is currently one of the most distributed applications in the Ovi Store. Needless to say, it’s really exciting to be working so closely with the largest handset manufacturer in the world to bring our 250 million users worldwide an innovative Facebook experience on their mobile devices – and this is just the beginning.”

The Ovi for Developers beta program

Nokia is inviting developers to join the Ovi for Developers beta program on the Forum Nokia Developer Community site (www.forum.nokia.com/Ovi), and will make the Ovi SDK Beta and Ovi APIs available to them. Applications created with Ovi SDK and Ovi APIs will be distributed through the Ovi Store in 2010, bringing the applications available to the hands of millions of consumers around the world.

The Ovi SDK Beta and Ovi APIs

The technology preview, now available to developers via registration, contains:

Ovi SDK Beta – an easy-to-use, web-based toolbox which provides tools to create applications for the web, and Symbian and Maemo platforms, with integrated Ovi features and a distinct user interface. The Ovi SDK Beta contains the Ovi APIs and all-new Ovi User Interface (UI) libraries, which enable effortless creation of rich applications. The Ovi SDK Beta utilizes standard web technologies – HTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and JavaScript (JS) – programming languages that are most familiar to the world’s developer community.

Ovi APIs – provide developers with a simple way to integrate service features such as maps or navigation to their web applications. Nokia today introduced the first two Ovi APIs:

- Ovi Maps Player API – bringing maps to mobile and web applications effortlessly. The API is powered by Ovi Maps and features over 180 country maps, location-based search and detailed place information. Other features include vector-based maps that give a range of views, including map, terrain and 3D modes for dynamic map mash-ups. Nokia first introduced the Ovi Maps Player API for the web earlier this year.

- Ovi Navigation Player API – allowing developers to bring Nokia’s industry-leading walk and drive navigation features to their applications, including pedestrian navigation, turn-by-turn car navigation and route planning. This makes it possible for content creators to create applications that take the consumer to his destination of choice – be it to a friend’s location, a landmark, a restaurant, or the bus stop.

For more details & to apply for the Ovi SDK beta, dont forget to check out http://www.forum.nokia.com/Ovi

Here’s a video showing off the Ovi SDK :

And a video showing off the Ovi Ecosystem :