Nokia has reportedly decided to lock down access to Navifirm, an online firmware repository which has, on several occasions, been the source of early access to official Windows Phone firmware, much before the company officially releases the update to consumer handsets.

According to a Smartmobil Nokia report, the company will implement access control to restrict open access to its firmware repository at the end of the month. In what could be bad news for Nokia users who were looking to access the firmware releases via the company's online repository, the Finnish mobile phone manufacturer will restrict the open access to only those with a "Nokia Online" login to access both application and device software downloads.

Here is the full text of the news bulletin picked up by Smartmobil Nokia:

"IMPORTANT NEWS FROM NOKIA BULLETIN 12-21-2012:

Nokia will close open connection to Nokia Firmware Repository during January 2013 and implement access control. After this, login to Nokia Online is required to access Nokia Firmware Repository. During transition phase (December 2012-January 2013) both open and restricted channels are open, but the open channel will be closed at the end of January 2013. After this, application updates and device software downloading are possible only by using the latest service software releases with NOL login supported."

The short announcement did not clearly mention if the new path requires a standard Nokia account or something else. However, it is speculated that the new development would mean fewer previews and a longer wait for an alternative.