LiMo Foundation News

  • Open Letter to the Wholesale Applications Community

     

    Dear Industry Colleagues:

    Further to the public announcement of 15 February 2010, I am very pleased to write this open letter to the initiators of the Wholesale Applications Community on behalf of the Board of LiMo Foundation offering a) our full support, b) our committed participation, and c) our immediate practical assistance in a spirit of whole-industry cooperation.

    It is clear to us that the highly complementary areas of focus, shared belief in true openness and common industry vision create an exceptional opportunity for deep and long-term collaboration between LiMo Foundation and the Wholesale Applications Community to release unfettered innovation across the industry and fully ignite the mobile internet in a way that is compelling and life-enhancing to consumers everywhere.

    LiMo Foundation was launched in 2007 as a constitutionally open, transparent and non-discriminatory industry consortium with the sole purpose of collaboratively delivering a competitive Linux-based device software platform to the industry upon which commercial innovation can freely thrive without brand or business model conflict with the underlying platform. Since LiMo’s launch, three major releases...
  • LiMo Foundation Handset Lineup Expands With New Feature-Rich Devices From ELSE, NEC, Panasonic

    Newest LiMo handsets combine style, durability, and in-demand high-performance functionality

    BARCELONA, Spain, February 15, 2010 – LiMo Foundation™, a global consortium of leading companies from throughout the mobile industry, today announced new LiMo compliant handsets from manufacturers ELSE, NEC, and Panasonic Mobile Communications. These models bring the number of LiMo devices announced to date to fifty.

    “We welcome the arrival of these innovative new devices which attest to the richness and versatility of LiMo Platform,” said Morgan Gillis, executive director of the LiMo Foundation. “The continued growth of LiMo devices is further endorsement of LiMo’s vision, mission, and technologies.”

    Designed to appeal to consumers seeking elegant, feature-rich handsets, the new models combine next-generation functionality and reliable performance in an array of sleek, sophisticated device designs. Integrating advanced user interface technologies and critical functionality and reliability elements such as keypad-to-touchpad conversion, high-megapixel auto-focus cameras, waterproofing, and extended battery life will ensure a more immersive...
  • Mobile Industry Leaders Collaborate for On-Time Delivery of R3 LiMo Platform

    Latest release of mobile industry’s only independent handset platform imminently available

    BARCELONA, Spain, February 15, 2010 – LiMo Foundation, a global consortium of leading companies from throughout the mobile industry, today announced the imminent availability of the new R3 release of LiMo Platform. The updated platform features new support for Location Based Services (LBS) and contact management and extends existing features including support for application management, advanced UI and multimedia technologies, and enhanced security and networking.

    “Delivery of R3 of LiMo Platform is a further important delivery milestone and again for LiMo Foundation demonstrates that powerful likeminded companies can work together practically to create a common platform that is evolved and governed through a truly open and independent process,” said Morgan Gillis, executive director of LiMo Foundation. “This latest update to the LiMo Platform also furthers LiMo’s leadership in commercially unifying mobile Linux technologies for the benefit of the whole industry.”

Palm - the Trailblazer?
Written by Patanjali Somayaji, Director, Engineering, Azingo   
Wednesday, 21 October 2009 10:46

 

Palm's recent announcements around the openness of their Application Developer Model did not garner as much attention as the other stories about Application Developers not making much money on Application Stores, despite the hype. However, in the current climate of closed Application Stores, Palm's plan is quite significant:

(1) Palm will allow developers to distribute their applications via a Web link (via Palm), that directly installs the Application to the device without going through the App Store

(2) No $99 developer fee for Apps that are released as open source

(3) Opening up of analytical data to developers, and

(4) No Palm review of applications that are published.

 

In today's climate of closed Application Stores, Palm's announcement is very significant – development and SDKs are open, but platforms still control the deployment of applications. This can be very controlled, as in the case of Apple, and not so rigid, as on Google Android. Palm has taken quite a few steps ahead with web distribution of applications and access to analytical data.

 

Is this the future for all Application Stores? The answer lies in how large an ecosystem Palm can drive with this approach. While Palm's expertise in building ecosystems is well known, the landscape has changed significantly, and Palm is still working on the chicken-and-egg problem of getting enough devices out in the market to sustain developer momentum.

 

The application distribution is not completely open yet – the developer submits the App to Palm, and Palm publishes a link that can be used on a web page to distribute the Application. However, it is a step in the positive direction and it is a sign of things to come, and if Palm succeeds, others will have to follow.

 

 

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The LiMo blog will include a rich assortment of entries reflecting perspectives that span market segments, geographies, and job responsibilities.  Our mission is to engage in direct conversation with a variety of stakeholders and thought leaders – this dialogue will be valuable as LiMo’s members work to collaboratively advance the LiMo Platform for the mobile industry.  The blog posts reflect the opinions of the individual bloggers, and not necessarily that of LiMo or its members.

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