by Kye Husbands
You read that right and the first question probably going through your mind is, well, why the heck not?
Three months ago HP’s Touchpad, Web OS and their whole computer business were in the garbage, but HP’s recent move could resurrect Web OS and spur a whole new level of interest and traction for HP down the road.
Let’s be clear about this. This is a gamble by HP but they really don’t have anything to lose by doing it and rather, everything to gain. However, this move has the potential to be very disruptive to what was quickly becoming a two horse race between Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS.
So what does open sourcing Web OS mean for the smartphone industry?
- Developer interest in WebOS could push RIM one step further down the totem pole and also have some impact on Google’s traction as manufacturers like Samsung and HTC look to diversify a bit, instead of having all of their apples in Google’s basket.
- We all worry about the two horse race having to much control and for months now, since the Nokia & Microsoft partnership, we have anticipated that Microsoft would step into that #3 spot, but with little to show to date and HP’s decision today they may have to work a little harder again to garner some respect going forward.
- WebOS has long been touted as a solid mobile operating system and HP’s Touchpad had a lot of promise when it was first announced, so reviving WebOS through a vibrant open source developer community is a good bet.
Time will tell how this one unfolds but it’s definitely worth the gamble.
Kudos to HP for making a potentially very disruptive and innovative decision at the same time.
