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Google's Open Source Mobile Platform

As expected, today Google took the wraps off of the gPhone (as the media have for months been referring to the rumored project). Google is "leading a broad industry alliance to transform mobile phones into powerful mobile computers," and will be licensing its software to all comers on an open source basis under the Apache license. (The Wall Street Journal's Ben Worthen demonstrates a miserable grasp of what "open source" means.) Google's US partners include Nextel and Sprint, but not AT&T nor Verizon. Phones will be available in the second half of 2008 — not the spring as earlier reports had speculated. News.com's analysis warns that Google won't take over the mobile market overnight, though they quote Forrester in the opinion that Google may be one of the three biggest mobile players after several years of shakeout.

3 of 199 comments (clear)

  1. first psot!!! by doyoulikeworms · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    from my cell phone running the gPhone platform!

  2. Just in time by Sterling2p · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    This is great! My contract is about to run out and I am thinking about my options.

  3. bluetooth peer to peer by osoese · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    with a sling-blade mmmhmmm.