Close
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Menu
Search
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications
    • Development
    • Mobile
    • Networking

    And the Google Phone Will Be…

    By
    Clint Boulton
    -
    October 10, 2007
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      Google is likely to release a mobile operating system and a suite of mobile applications that enable online services, not fashion its own mobile phone, according to industry experts.

      Amid speculation from several news outlets and blogs, the key question remains: what cards will Google show for its mobile play?

      “Thats the $64,000 question,” said Osterman Research Founder Michael Osterman, adding that he believes the Mountain View, Calif., company will launch a softphone of some sort that could come as part of Googles Apps suite, giving Google a more complete unified communications solution.

      Pointing to Googles deep infrastructure of search and archiving technologies, Osterman said he envisions a softphone—a program that enables VOIP (voice over IP) telephone calls from computers and handheld gadgets—to provide speech-to-text functions and the ability to search across the archive, along with the integration of Google Apps on a device.

      Click here to read more about Google phone rumors.

      IDC analyst Karsten Weide said he has heard that Google has beefed up its marketing presence in New York to prepare for some kind of mobile launch. However, Weide doesnt believe Google will wield its own device because its too far afield for a vendor whose bread and butter includes search engines and applications.

      “Its not impossible but it would be hard for them,” Weide said. “The margins in that business are very thin, the competition is very tough. I have my doubts that its ever going to happen as a mass-market product.”

      Weide believes Google may be developing phones internally and showing them around as a launching pad for a suite of mobile online services.

      To that point, Google has recently acquired two small social networking startups, Zingku and Jaiku, both of which are focused on the mobile space.

      Read more about Googles purchase of Jaiku here

      Like Twitter, Jaiku, which Google acquired Oct. 9, is a microblog, allowing users to send short messages to others in the Jaiku network. In a brief interview about the deal, a Jaiku spokesperson offered his rationale for the buy.

      “Google is really going to move their mobile strategy forward, so if theyre going to introduce a phone, they just bought into the leading technology in that kind of niche with Jaiku,” the spokesperson said.

      “They wont make the phone; theyll likely subsidize it and may spec it,” Enderle Group analyst Rob Enderle said, echoing the thoughts of many industry experts who believe Google would be unwise to throw its hat into the cutthroat mobile phone market, where rivals such as Nokia, Samsung and Apple are duking it out.

      Next page: The Google Phone Will Be…

      And the Google Phone

      Will Be…”>

      Just as skeptics have shot down the arrival of a Google mobile device, some doubt Google will attempt an open source operating system for mobile phones to rival Symbian and Windows Mobile.

      Gartner analyst Ken Dulaney, noting that phone code is some of the most difficult code to produce, argued that Google might be better off buying a mobile OS.

      “Why not buy Palm, which they could buy for a pittance and use their Linux platform, which will take Google years to equal in terms of depth,” Dulaney told eWEEK.

      To be successful, Dulaney said Google must embed itself in many, many phone manufacturers devices and persuade prospective users about trading a lock-in with an operator for a lock-in with Google.

      Given the challenges, Enderle also refused to commit to the notion of a Google mobile OS but said the company would certainly provide mobile applications and, “with spectrum they could do some really interesting things towards their free cell phone vision.”

      Ah, the spectrum issue.

      Against the backdrop of all of the hullabaloo and speculation lies one salient fact: Google has said it is interested in bidding on 700 MHz wireless spectrum in January. Such a move begs the question: why own spectrum unless the company is going to use it to support a mobile platform of some sort?

      Read more here about Googles bid for 700 MHz wireless spectrum.

      Weide would not deny the connection between spectrum and Googles mobile plans, but added that Googles $4.6 billion bid is more doubtful than Google releasing its own mobile phone.

      Weide argued that it is unlikely Google will bid to become another mobile carrier, joining Sprint, Vodafone, AT&T Wireless, Verizon and T-Mobile.

      “We believe Google doesnt have enough money to do it,” Weide said, noting that Google would have to physically set up a network. He added that one rumor floating around has Google partnering with Apple on a mobile network.

      Enderle quashed that notion, noting that Apple has a horrid partnering history and Google and Apple are at opposite ends when it comes to how to generate revenue. Philosophical disagreements could be catastrophic for such a partnership.

      He added that Google has a lot of dark fiber and that, tied in with a mobile network, could suddenly pop up and scare a number of carriers right off the bat.

      The conclusion?

      “Whatever they do will sell,” Dulaney said. “Operators, who are not real smart anyway, will put it on the deck just because they think Google is frightening. Only the consumer will tell us what they think.”

      Check out eWEEK.coms for the latest news, reviews and analysis in programming environments and developer tools.

      Avatar
      Clint Boulton

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Android

      Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro: Durability for Tough...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 5, 2020 0
      Have you ever dropped your phone, winced and felt the pain as it hit the sidewalk? Either the screen splintered like a windshield being...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Why Data Security Will Face Even Harsher...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 1, 2020 0
      Who would know more about details of the hacking process than an actual former career hacker? And who wants to understand all they can...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      How Veritas Is Shining a Light Into...

      eWEEK EDITORS - September 25, 2020 0
      Protecting data has always been one of the most important tasks in all of IT, yet as more companies become data companies at the...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      How NVIDIA A100 Station Brings Data Center...

      Zeus Kerravala - November 18, 2020 0
      There’s little debate that graphics processor unit manufacturer NVIDIA is the de facto standard when it comes to providing silicon to power machine learning...
      Read more
      Apple

      Why iPhone 12 Pro Makes Sense for...

      Wayne Rash - November 26, 2020 0
      If you’ve been watching the Apple commercials for the past three weeks, you already know what the company thinks will happen if you buy...
      Read more
      eWeek


      Contact Us | About | Sitemap

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      Terms of Service | Privacy Notice | Advertise | California - Do Not Sell My Information

      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×