London, Oct 9: Google much hyped GPhone is not actually a phone, or the perceived 'i-killer" as believed till now, but an operating system designed to bring all the technology giant"s online goodies-including its highly lucrative advertising – to mobile users.

Much of Google"s financial success has been due to the rapid growth in online advertising at the expense of traditional media, and now the Internet search giant is seeking ways to extend its dominance of Internet advertising to the mobile phone market.

According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, Google is fashioning a mobile phone operating system that it wants service providers and manufacturers to install in their handsets.

Google believes the cost of the phones could even be subsidised by the advertising that appears on their screens.

The paper said Google would shortly announce the development of the software, adding that the phone could be available as early as next year.

Currently, mobile phones use a variety of operating systems to access the Internet including systems from Microsoft and London-based Symbian, the biggest maker of mobile-phone software, whose owners include Nokia, Ericsson and Siemens.

Manufacturers build the software into the phones. Google is expected to offer its software free without charging phone makers a licensing fee such as that demanded by Microsoft.

According to the paper, along with the operating system, Google is also expected to develop a special web browser for mobile phones and tailor many of its applications to exceed the search and mapping software currently offered on wireless handsets.

 

ANI
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