Rumor: Samsung to buy webOS
Far and away the biggest seller of smartphones running Android is going to buy its own operating system? Now, that would be a very, very disruptive move and perhaps bold beyond their means. No matter which way you choose to slice it, the idea has merit.
HP wants out of the webOS hardware business — that much is clear. However, the question of who has the means, not just money, to make it work remains unanswered.
DigiTimes (collective groan), quoting unnamed sources (double groan), reports that Samsung is considering purchasing webOS from Hewlett Packard.
Samsung … reportedly has already recruited HP’s ex-vice president of PSG marketing Raymond Wah to handle Samsung’s PC sales, and the company is also reportedly considering purchasing webOS to compete head on against Apple and Google.
That’s pretty thin.
In for penny…
Nevertheless, depending on who you read, Samsung is the number two or three smartphone seller worldwide. The great majority of those devices run Android.
Now, just for the sake of argument, assume all of that messy integration and app ecosystem just happened. If Samsung purchased and switched to webOS, the world changes, boom. Changes how we view Google’s Motorola purchase.
Would this make things better or worse for Windows Phone?
Whatever the case, sure would make an interesting world that much more…
via MacDailyNews
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August 30th, 2011
Does Samsung really need another OS? They are doing quite well from Android and Bada phone are also selling quite well (apparently, Bada phones outsold WP7 phones last year). As well, Samsung make WP7 phones. So, to own two OSes (Bada and webOS) as well as make phones for another two OSes (Android and WP7), would seem to be an unnecessary stretch. I want webOS to survive, but I have my doubts that it will be with Samsung.