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SteveW · 06-25-2008, 2:04 PM

Nokia Plans Mobile Software Surge With Open-Source Symbian

The cell phone maker is buying the remaining shares of Symbian for $410 million and plans to open source the mobile operating system.

By Paul McDougall
InformationWeek
June 24, 2008 03:59 PM

Much of the cell phone industry, led by Nokia (NYSE: NOK), sought to wrest control of its destiny from commercial software makers Tuesday with the announcement that it would convert its own Symbian operating system into a free, open source OS backed by a coalition of some of the world's biggest handset makers and mobile chip producers.

Nokia, already a 48% stakeholder in Symbian Ltd., said it would buy out the company's remaining shares from its telecom partners for $410 million and place the Symbian OS -- the world's most widely used mobile operating system -- into the hands of the open source movement under the royalty-free Eclipse Public License.

To steward the project, Nokia will partner with rival manufacturers Sony Ericsson, Motorola, and LG Electronics under the banner of a newly formed group called the Symbian Foundation. The group also includes AT&T, NTT DoCoMo, Texas Instruments, Vodafone, Samsung, and ST Microelectronics.

Foundation representatives said in a statement that the group plans to add the Nokia S60, DoCoMo MOAP, and UIQ mobile environments to Symbian to create "one open mobile software platform" that will be available over the next two years.

"We want to make this the most widely used software platform on the planet," said John Forsyth, Symbian's VP for strategy, in an interview. Symbian is used in about 66% of all smartphones and 6% of basic cell phones.

More...

SW

SmArTeStChIlD421 · 06-25-2008, 2:20 PM

i never was all to thrilled with the Symbian OS when I did have a Nokia phone and i dont think it would be much different in smartphone version

SteveW · 06-25-2008, 9:02 PM

Here are a few links to analysis and comment.

Symbian - the battle for your mobile
Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC

Nokia Kneecaps Microsoft, Google
Posted by Richard Martin, InformationWeek

Symbian's Open Source Gambit Ups Stakes In Mobile OS War
By J. Nicholas Hoover
InformationWeek

SW

06-25-2008, 2:04 PM	#1 (permalink)
SteveW Battery mgmt is my life Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Cambridge, MA Posts: 1,424 Phone(s): LG CU500,BlackBerry 8830, Previous: BB 8703e, Nokia 6200, Siemens S46, Ericsson R280LX Provider(s): T-Mobile (personal), Verizon (work) Devices: Palm T2 Thanks: 8 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	Nokia Plans Mobile Software Surge With Open-Source Symbian Nokia Plans Mobile Software Surge With Open-Source Symbian The cell phone maker is buying the remaining shares of Symbian for $410 million and plans to open source the mobile operating system. By Paul McDougall InformationWeek June 24, 2008 03:59 PM Much of the cell phone industry, led by Nokia (NYSE: NOK), sought to wrest control of its destiny from commercial software makers Tuesday with the announcement that it would convert its own Symbian operating system into a free, open source OS backed by a coalition of some of the world's biggest handset makers and mobile chip producers. Nokia, already a 48% stakeholder in Symbian Ltd., said it would buy out the company's remaining shares from its telecom partners for $410 million and place the Symbian OS -- the world's most widely used mobile operating system -- into the hands of the open source movement under the royalty-free Eclipse Public License. To steward the project, Nokia will partner with rival manufacturers Sony Ericsson, Motorola, and LG Electronics under the banner of a newly formed group called the Symbian Foundation. The group also includes AT&T, NTT DoCoMo, Texas Instruments, Vodafone, Samsung, and ST Microelectronics. Foundation representatives said in a statement that the group plans to add the Nokia S60, DoCoMo MOAP, and UIQ mobile environments to Symbian to create "one open mobile software platform" that will be available over the next two years. "We want to make this the most widely used software platform on the planet," said John Forsyth, Symbian's VP for strategy, in an interview. Symbian is used in about 66% of all smartphones and 6% of basic cell phones. More... SW __________________ "First - and understand this, Harry, 'cause it's very important - not all wizards are good." -- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

06-25-2008, 2:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
SmArTeStChIlD421 Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Reading, PA Posts: 3,639 Phone(s): Motorola RAZR V3m (Red) Provider(s): Sprint Thanks: 4 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Nokia Plans Mobile Software Surge With Open-Source Symbian i never was all to thrilled with the Symbian OS when I did have a Nokia phone and i dont think it would be much different in smartphone version __________________ SERO F&F 500: 500 Flexible Anytime Minutes, UNLIMITED Nights and Weekends (7PM), UNLIMITED Mobile to Mobile, UNLIMITED Power Vision, UNLIMITED Messaging (Text/Picture/Video), Pick 3

06-25-2008, 9:02 PM	#3 (permalink)
SteveW Battery mgmt is my life Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Cambridge, MA Posts: 1,424 Phone(s): LG CU500,BlackBerry 8830, Previous: BB 8703e, Nokia 6200, Siemens S46, Ericsson R280LX Provider(s): T-Mobile (personal), Verizon (work) Devices: Palm T2 Thanks: 8 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Nokia Plans Mobile Software Surge With Open-Source Symbian Here are a few links to analysis and comment. Symbian - the battle for your mobile Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC Nokia Kneecaps Microsoft, Google Posted by Richard Martin, InformationWeek Symbian's Open Source Gambit Ups Stakes In Mobile OS War By J. Nicholas Hoover InformationWeek SW __________________ "First - and understand this, Harry, 'cause it's very important - not all wizards are good." -- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

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