LiMo stretches footprint with new sign-ups

The LiMo Foundation promises major revisions to its Linux phone software platform

The LiMo Foundation is expanding its membership and will be announcing major revisions to its Linux phone software platform at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next week.

The organisation has signed Spanish telecoms giant Telefónica to the board, and will have access to nearly a billion customers. LiMo will also have new handsets for display at the show. Devices based on Linux are forecast by some to take a quarter of the smartphone market by 2013.

"This signals substantial growth and opportunity for OEMs and developers to create devices and applications that meet the needs of major operators," said Morgan Gillis, executive director of the LiMo Foundation.

Also on display at Mobile World Congress will be a preview of the second release of the LiMo platform, which will include stronger multimedia, support for location-based services and better security code. The release will go live later this year.

LiMo also announced that it will be using the Open Mobile Terminal Platform Bondi standard for web applications and widgets on the platform in an effort to encourage developers. The standard will allow better integration of features, such as calendar, camera or contact services, across platforms.

Since its launch in 2007 the LiMo Foundation has grown its support base quickly, but it faces a tough market. Symbian and some manufacturers are reluctant to take a chance on mobile Linux, but the Foundation is nevertheless keen to show that support is growing.

"As more and more companies jump on the open-source bandwagon, industry unification around mobile Linux is expected to gain momentum, enabling the delivery of next-generation handsets and new waves of innovative applications that will provide consumers with a truly personalised mobile web experience," said Dr Malik Kamal-Saadi, principal analyst of handsets and devices at Informa.