Check Point Software is buying Nokia's security appliance business.

Terms of the deal, announced Monday, remain undisclosed. The agreement is subject to regulatory approval but expected to close in the first quarter of 2009.

Nokia has made use of Check Point firewall and VPN software technology to market purpose-built appliances for about ten years. More than 220,000 Nokia appliances have been bought by 23,000 customers worldwide.

A market shift towards a preference for easy-to-install appliances prompted Check Point's entry into the hardware market, on its own account, about five years ago. Before then, it was reluctant to get involved in selling hardware.

Check Point promises to support Nokia customers and customers of its own line of UTM-1 and Power-1 dedicated appliances.

For Nokia, the deal represents a chance to concentrate on its core businesses in mobile handsets and telecoms kit for carriers. ®