We all know that China Mobile has its own special version of Android called OPhone. From what we’ve understood, it’s a platform that sits on top of Google’s original mobile operating system, allowing the world’s largest mobile operator to better control its ecosystem. However, now they’re thinking to bring OPhone a step closer to Android and make all (or at least most) of the Android apps work on OPhone-based devices.
As a matter of fact, according to unnamed “insiders” at China Mobile, OPhone is “dead” and the operator may even adopt Android in its standard form.
However, some folks believe that OPhone has already been adopted by quite a few developers, attracted by a sheer number of China Mobile’s subscriber base. In that way, killing OPhone could be seen as a bad business decision. Moreover, OPhone is set to get two updates during this year.
So what do we make of this? Err… nothing. We’ll definitely be watching what China Mobile does with Android. A carrier as big as they are could definitely make big changes in the overall smartphone marketplace. Stay tuned…
[Via: MobileBusinessBriefing]