Google gPhone, the iPhone killer ?

Despite all of the very interesting speculation over the last few months, Google is not announcing the gPhone but a significant Open Handset Alliance and an ambitious Android project that represent much more than a single hardware piece of device.  They have reported: 

“Android will be the foundation for many new phones and will create an entirely new mobile experience for users, with new applications and new capabilities we can’t imagine today.  Android is the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. It includes an operating system, user-interface and applications -- all of the software to run a mobile phone, but without the proprietary obstacles that have hindered mobile innovation” .

The initial reports about the Google announcement of its mobile phone strategy are coming in now.  You can look at Google's blog for its official viewpoint.

The summary is that Google announced:

•    No hardware yet. Despite the many mockups and prototype pictures running around, no hardware was announced and none is expected until the second half of 2008.

•    An open-source mobile phone software stack. Google's not making any devices, it\'s just creating a standard set of open source software to run mobile phones and use Google services.

•    An alliance of 30 technology and carrier companies. Google got handset makers HTC, Motorola, and Samsung on board, as well as notable carriers T-Mobile and Sprint to sign up for its Open Handset Alliance

•     Available SDK, a software developing kit for programmers, yet no hardware to test.
What does this all mean for competing software companies and handset providers?

•    The Open Handset Alliance targets RIM, Symbian, Palm and Microsoft.
Google has just engaged another challenge and set the price of the next generation mobile phone software stack to zero, Google target much higher thought. Symbian, RIM, Palm and Microsoft, they will all need a tougher marketing to convince that they are much better than the “free” alternative.

•    There's no iPhone killer yet. Despite the speculations that the gPhone will be the iPhone killer, there's no competition for Apple yet.
 

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