Nokia challenges Android with open source Symbian

by Julian Prokaza
on Tue 24 Jun 2008 Comment

Symbian OS logoNokia has made the surprise announcement that it will be buying out the rest of its fellow Symbian shareholders - and taking the operating system open source.

Nokia, which currently owns a 48% stake, will be buying the rest for just under £309 million. It then plans to join other Symbian manufacturers, networks and chip makers to form the Symbian Foundation to develop the software.

The foundation will see Nokia pool its Series 60 assets with Sony Ericsson and Motorola's UIQ and NTT DoCoMo's MOAP to create a new Symbian Platform by next year.

The move should allow Symbian to better compete with Google's open source Android and marks another brave step for the OS, which has its roots in British firm Psion. Misty eyed Series 3 fans will remember it developed Symbian's forerunner, EPOC, before finally selling its stake in Symbian Ltd to Nokia in 2004.

[ BBC]

Originally published on www.mobilecomputermag.co.uk, now incorporated into Broadband Genie
© Dennis Publishing

Like this? Please share it!

Like Broadband Genie?




Comments

Add your comment now

Post a reply to this thread

 

 

Please describe your emotions in making this comment:


Powered by reCAPTCHA

Unless you are a verified user, comments will be moderated before they appear. Comments submitted entirely in capital letters, containing advertising or excessive swearing will be rejected; please try to be polite. The best comments are relevant, factual and balanced; think about all aspects of the package, such as speed, connection quality and customer service. We reserve the right to edit comments.