SAP also said it plans to increase its 2010 dividend by 20 percent.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, net profit fell to 437 million euros ($598 million) from €681 million in the same period a year ago. Earnings per share declined to €37 from €57.

SAP released its full results Wednesday after the firm had reported on Jan. 13 a surge in quarterly revenue, triggering a 3.5 percent rally in its share price

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Remarkably, Nokia (NOK), which saw its share of the smartphone market decline to 35 percent from 41 percent last quarter, managed to push it back up to 40 percent in Q4. Quite a surprise considering that many expected the company’s smartphone share to fall even lower this quarter.

Anyway, on to the numbers:

Fourth-quarter net income was 948 million euros ($1.33 billion), or 26 eurocents a share. That’s up from 576 million euros, or 15 eurocents a share earned in the year-earlier period, and above consensus estimates, which called for earnings of 19 eurocents a share. Sales during the quarter fell 5.3 percent to 12 billion euros. But the number of handsets shipped rose 12 percent to 126.9 million units.

“In the fourth quarter the demand environment for handsets ended up being better than we anticipated and we took advantage of this upside,” Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said during a conference call.

“Sun Microsystems’ financial position has become more precarious and the commission’s inquiry has continued,” the letter states. “Some have raised concerns over the company’s ability to continue to employ its thousands of workers. Accordingly, we respectfully request the European Commission complete its investigation of this transaction as quickly as possible.”

An earnest (and surprising) appeal. But it’s hard to see it going over well with the EC, which issued a formal objection to the deal Nov. 9 and has been carping about Oracle’s (ORCL) lack of cooperation in its investigation for months now.

Meanwhile, Sun (JAVA), which reported a net loss of $2.2 billion for its 2009 fiscal year, compared with a net loss of $403 million for 2008, continues to lose about $100 million per month as it waits for the deal to close.

Below, the senators’ letter in full:

Chargé d’Affaires Angelos Pangratis 
Acting Head of Delegation
Delegation of the European Commission to the United States
2300 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20037
 
Dear Chargé d’Affaires Pangratis:
 
As fellow government officials committed to the principle that competition is the cornerstone of healthy economic growth, we would like to take this opportunity to share our thoughts with you as to the proposed acquisition of Sun Microsystems, Inc. by Oracle Corporation. In addition, due to Sun Microsystems’ deteriorating financial condition and the possible negative effect on employment of the company’s workforce, we respectfully request the European Commission expedite the completion of its investigation into this transaction. 
 
The United States Department of Justice, after an intensive investigation, closed its inquiry into this transaction without taking any action. In fact, the Justice Department did not find documentary evidence that this acquisition would harm competition. We recognize that the European Commission has a sovereign right to thoroughly investigate transactions where corporations utilize the European Union’s marketplace. Further, it is our understanding the Commission is concerned about competition in the database software market.  However, we have been informed by Sun Microsystems that their subsidiary, which competes in this specific market, generates only €17 million in revenue and that the same market has competitors with capitalizations of tens of billions of Euros. 
 
Unfortunately, Sun Microsystems’ financial position has become more precarious and the Commission’s inquiry has continued. Some have raised concerns over the company’s ability to continue to employ its thousands of workers. Accordingly, we respectfully request the European Commission complete its investigation of this transaction as quickly as possible.   
 
Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Now we know why Ericsson declined to offer a specific business outlook for 2009 when it last reported earnings. That said, the company seems to believe that the effects of global recession on its business are limited so far. Investments in wireless networks apparently continue apace, econalypse be damned.

“I think we have had a decent start of the year,” CEO Carl-Henric Svanberg said during a conference call with analysts. “We continue to gain market share. We had several strategic wins, we’re doing good in managed–both networks and managed services. There are some but still limited effects from the economic recession and still I think this is not the time to be too precise and predicting but realize that this is a very unusual time.”

For the first quarter, the company posted revenue of 9.276 billion euros, down 26.7 percent year over year, and 26.8 percent sequentially. Revenues from the device business were down 33.4 percent year over year, and 24.2 percent from Q4. The Nokia Siemens equipment business was down 12.1 percent versus a year ago, and 31.1 percent sequentially.

Profits in the quarter on a non-IFRS basis (the equivalent of non-GAAP) were 10 euro cents per share, versus 39 cents a year ago.

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The Mobuzz.tv survival saga continues and the verdict is: It’s down but not out…yet.

Last week, the producer of free online video shows, based in Spain, has been essentially panhandling its users, asking in a series of videos for five euros each to keep it afloat until it can get more funding. Mobuzz wanted to raise 120,000 euros by this week.

And while it only has gotten about one-fourth–or 33,000 euros–of the way there, despair not! Mobuzz’s Anil de Mello says it will flippity-flop on, even as it is creating some of the more compelling content on the Web of late related to its death throes.

Because, in the current squeezed environment for start-ups, you can either listen to droning venture capitalists lecture you about cutting back–oh, irony of ironies–or, well, beg for you life to the public.

It is kind of the same thing, but Mobuzz is being rather entertaining in its desperation and, at least, has a sense of humor about the whole bizarre endeavor.

Here are some of the key videos so far, from last week to today, as the Mobuzz turns:

Save Mobuzz from Anil de Mello on Vimeo.

Save Mobuzz – Wednesday Nov 5th Update from Anil de Mello on Vimeo.

Save Mobuzz – Update Nov 6th from Anil de Mello on Vimeo.

Mobuzz Lives! from Anil de Mello on Vimeo.