(MWC 2010) New mobile operating systems poised to challenge Apple, Google

By Lee Youkyung
BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 17 (Yonhap) -- The world's No. 1 handset maker Nokia Corp.
and the computer software giant Microsoft Corp. were among the companies that
have rolled out new operating systems for smartphones this week, highlighting the
trend of companies to bet on software to win attention in the fastest growing
smartphone segment.
Nokia Corp., which eschewed setting an official booth at this year's Mobile World
Congress (MWC) in the Spanish city of Barcelona, unveiled MeeGo, a new mobile
operating system jointly developed with the U.S. chipmaking giant Intel Corp.
The Linux-based MeeGo OS merges Nokia's software Maemo and Intel's Moblin, two
companies said. Nokia and Intel emphasized that MeeGo is an open source platform,
which could be adopted by a wide variety of computing devices including mobile
handsets.
Microsoft Corp. also unveiled a new version of its mobile software, Windows Phone
7 Series, hoping to win back the interest of handset device makers that have
shifted away from its previous Windows Mobile series, which received a lukewarm
response from smartphone users.
Microsoft, as it struggles to stay relevant in the mobile industry with more
users migrating to mobile computing from desktop computing, said it wanted to
make something that could differentiate its software-based phones from its
competitors.
"The phone is not a PC," Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president of Microsoft's
Windows Phone program unit, said, announcing the release of Windows Phone 7, in a
repeated phrase to stay clear from Microsoft's long-established image as a PC
software maker.
Samsung Electronics Co., the world's second-largest handset maker that is also
trying to stay competitive in the smartphone market, disclosed its first
Bada-based phone the Wave.
While it will pursue its multiple operating system strategies for a while,
meaning it will continue to roll out smartphones backed by various mobile
operating system, the portion of Bada within its smartphone portfolio will rise,
Samsung said.
"We plan to increase the portion of Bada this year," J.K. Shin, president of
Samsung's handset business unit, said during a press round table in Barcelona.
The series of new mobile softwares unveiled this week in Spain highlights the
increasing recognition by mobile industry players that it is the software that
differentiates smartphones, the segment that some analysts expect will likely
catch up with the traditional feature phone market as early as this year.
Meanwhile, Motorola Inc. and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB were among
the handset device makers that stay committed to the Android system, as more
device makers rely on Google's open platform to steal the iPhone's thunder.
"I think if you walk in the floor of Barcelona, one of the surprising stories is
that, everywhere you go you see Android," Vic Gundotra, Google's vice president
of engineering, told a press round table in Barcelona.
"What Android offers is a choice," John Gherghetta, corporate vice president of
Motorola's mobile devices business unit, said at a press round table. "Everybody
puts their own flavor of user interface and experience on top of the Android,
which I think is excellent for consumers."
ylee@yna.co.kr
(END)