Google Phone Has Mobile Calling Industry Worried
Internet giant Google is now gearing up to conquer the global mobile calling market. On Tuesday, Google announced a plan to release an operating system for mobile phones in partnership with handset makers and wireless providers around the world. The Google Phone could become the next iPhone, sweeping the mobile communications industry.
The biggest advantage of the Google Phone is likely to be its extensive Internet services. It will have almost all the features of the Internet -- search, location-based services, instant messaging, media player, and entertainment. This indicates that handsets are now becoming mini PCs.
Google has formed a partnership called the Open Handset Alliance (OHA) with some 30 global handset makers and mobile operators such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, Motorola, HTC, Intel, Qualcomm, China Mobile, NTT Docomo, and KDDI. A Samsung Electronics source said that the Google Phone will allow users to video clips about their areas of interest like movies and sports in the form of videos with the press of a button.
As handsets begin to adopt advanced features and act more like mini PCs, software and services are becoming more important than hardware. In the PC industry the most profitable company is software and service provider Microsoft. The software giant makes more money than PC manufacturers from its Windows operating system which comes installed on most PCs. Google aims to do the same with its mobile phone operating system. But it has strong rivals, including Microsoft, Nokia and Apple, which have their own mobile phone operating systems -- Windows Mobile, Symbian and OSX, respectively.
To beat these rivals, Google plans to use a low-price strategy. It has agreed to provide its operating system for next to nothing by basing it on the reasonably-priced Linux operating system. In contrast, Microsoft reportedly receives US$12 per handset in royalties. Google also plans to open up the source of the system software so its partners can modify it as they see fit. It will generate profits through advertising.
Google's entry into the mobile calling market is expected to cause an upheaval in the industry. Competition will likely get particularly fierce in the wireless Internet business as existing mobile operators will strive hard not to lose market share to newcomers like Apple and Google. Mobile handset makers are welcoming the news because expanded services can lead to an increase in demand. Handset makers are also happy because the Google Phones, expected early next year or in the second quarter, should boost their sales. But some point out that if handset makers depend too much on Google or Microsoft, they'll see their profits tumble just as PC makers did. An LG Electronics executive said that competition to produce Google Phone may become heated, which could push the phone's release earlier than expected.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
Posted by techaddict at 7:22 PM