Motorola announced yesterday it will ship an Android-based phone by the end of the year. It has not abandoned it's Windows Mobile phone development but has at least postponed development and further releases for a year.Could this be another example of the current economic conditions pushing a major manufacturer towards further embracing Open Source Software?
Sure the numbers don't look good. Lots of red numbers indicating losses where not so long ago profits were looking good (not great, but good).
In the short term I think embracing Linux and Android will certainly help with the bottom line. They are not abandoning Windows altogether and no doubt Microsoft will be making some very tempting offers to ensure Motorola returns to the fold quickly.
It will be interesting to see what they can do by dedicating resources to Android for a year.
Not that Motorola are Linux newbies either, they already have a number of Linux-based phones on the market.
Economics aside, I see this as another endorsement of Linux and OSS by a major manufacturer. I hope this persuades more organisations to take the plunge or at least dabble a toe in the waters.
It will be interesting to see what they can do by dedicating resources to Android for a year.
Not that Motorola are Linux newbies either, they already have a number of Linux-based phones on the market.
Economics aside, I see this as another endorsement of Linux and OSS by a major manufacturer. I hope this persuades more organisations to take the plunge or at least dabble a toe in the waters.
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