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No More Firefox For Windows Mobile

Posted by timothy on from the no-room-at-the-ecosystem dept.

angry tapir writes "Mozilla has decided to stop development of a version of its Firefox mobile Web browser for phones running Windows Mobile. The reason is that Microsoft has closed the door to native applications on smartphones running its new Windows Phone 7 Series software. More reasoning can be found in a blog post by Stuart Parmenter, director of Mobile Engineering at Mozilla."

3 of 226 comments (clear)

  1. Preemptive Strike by SuperKendall · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Given that Microsoft has a closed app store model for Windows 7 (just like the iPhone) the chances are good Microsoft would not allow Mozilla to run anyway, even if they wanted to make a nice Silverlight based browser...

    That was an interesting choice on Microsoft's part, I can't believe they are not trying to grasp a lot of C# developers that have shifted to the iPhone just to move where the marketshare is. Now those guys have no reason to switch back anytime soon.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  2. Shame on me, RTFA. by headkase · · Score: 4, Interesting

    So the reason Microsoft is not allowing native applications is because they are requiring apps to run in either Silverlight or XNA. This is a classic strike against for-profit closed-source: their priorities do not always line up with their users. Remove the profit-motive and all of a sudden you are following your users not trying to make your own tech the standard of the day. I like my software bottom-up please, not top-down.

    --
    Shh.
  3. ROFL! by jmorris42 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Good grief, just how stupid can these guys get!

    Just about the ONLY nice thing people say about Windows on a phone is that it is an open platform for all the corporate junk. Now it is a closed clone of the iPhone complete with app store. All the evil with none of the hipster kewl artsy metrosexual buzz.

    Without a monopoly Microsoft couldn't sell icewater in hell.

    --
    Democrat delenda est