Handset manufacturers Motorola, Samsung, NEC and Panasonic have joined forces with mobile operators Vodafone and NTT DoCoMo to create a consistent Linux-based platform for mobile handsets.
The initiative, which will be governed through an independent, not-for-profit (and as-yet-unnamed) foundation, seeks to develop and market a consistent set of mobile Linux application programming interfaces (APIs).
It also aims to build a coherent ecosystem, including a first reference implementation for manufacturers and developer tools, around the technology. This is intended to attract developers, ISVs and chipset manufacturers, as well as other OEMs and operators. The first handsets based on the new specification are targeted for introduction in H2 2007.
With heavy hitters such as Vodafone, Motorola, Samsung and DoCoMo (in particular) backing this initiative, it has to be taken seriously. It may also begin to test manufacturer loyalty to commercial handset software platform players such as Microsoft and Symbian once the first devices come on stream. Nonetheless, considerable challenges remain. Spokespeople for the group said the legal aspects surrounding the technology licensing are not yet settled. What is open source and what is not has not yet been decided. Nor are certification and application testing procedures yet firm. These are not trivial matters and as such Microsoft, Symbian, Nokia and others will not be panicking just yet. But they will be looking over their shoulders.
Wouldn’t you like to be able to use Open Source, third-party applications on your cell phone?
Or more importantly have a common OS that a lot of people write for. At the moment you need a smartphone for even the simplist contact sync features.
Pure hardware manufacturers may be finally learning that using open platforms (or opening up their platforms for complete development) is the way to go!!!!