Nokia has denied reports it is planning a comeback to the mobile industry in 2016, stating it will not manufacture or sell any smartphones any time in the near future.

That sounds like conclusive evidence Nokia is not returning, but the language in its statement makes it seem like the Finnish company will still return, in some sense, to the mobile market.

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In a similar move to the Nokia N1 tablet -- which is manufactured and sold through third-party partners -- Nokia will offer designs, schematics and patents for the smartphone and sell the license to a third-party.

The name alone carries a lot of weight. Nokia is one of the most recognizable brands in the world, especially in places where its feature phones still reign supreme against players like Samsung, Sony and BlackBerry.

Nokia Technologies is reportedly hard at work building the future products to bring Nokia back into the fray, even if it is through third-party partners. It is similar to Apple's own system, although they handle the distribution and selling of the devices instead of handing that off to third-parties.

Removing all responsibility means Nokia can reap the rewards without worrying about the cost of manufacturing or distribution lines, but that also puts a lot of pressure on the third-party supplier, who may not be up to snuff.

The Nokia smartphone hasn't been shown off yet. We suspect that it is still in development, given Nokia is not allowed to have its brand anywhere next a smartphone until the end of 2016, as per its agreement with Microsoft.

Microsoft dropped the Nokia brand last year, in a move to bring 'Lumia' into the fold. Windows Phone is still a lackluster platform in terms of users, but it might see some light with the launch of Windows 10 and universal apps.

Nokia could see progress in places like China, India or other South-East Asian regions, but unless it finds a good enough manufacturer to build the smartphone and distribute it throughout the region, we might not ever see a new Nokia device in Europe or the United States.

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