MWC Scorecard: Operating Systems

Whose profile is rising: Symbian. Sure, the introduction of Nokia's Ovi Store--a virtual one-stop shopping destination for Symbian applications--grabbed most of the headlines at Mobile World Congress 2009, but the Symbian OS was the focus of several additional announcements as well. With the non-profit Symbian Foundation continuing on pace to begin operations before the second half of 2009, Nokia announced the completion of a €500 million ($640 million U.S.) loan agreement with the European Investment Bank earmarked to fund software research and development projects to make Symbian-based smartphones more competitive; the handset giant added that the loan will also benefit the work of the Symbian Foundation and its development of open-source software for mobile devices.

A year ago at Mobile World Congress 2008, Sony Ericsson announced its first-ever Windows Mobile device, the Xperia X1. This time around, the handset maker returned to its Symbian roots to announce a new "concept" phone called Idou (pronounced "I do") that it says will be available in the second half of 2009. Idou (just a working name) features a touchscreen user interface, a 3.5-inch screen and a 12-megapixel camera, and runs on the Symbian Foundation OS. Sony Ericsson added it has a new strategy and a renewed focus on innovation, with plans to introduce new unique services that drive revenue and strengthen its brand through better market positioning.

Seventy-eight industry partners have now pledged support for the Symbian Foundation, with Atelier, Bank of America, Gemalto, HP, Imagination Technologies, Mobica, MySpace, Nanoradio, Omron Software, Qualcomm, SanDisk, SESCA, SiRF Technology and VirtualLogix all adding their endorsements just days prior to Mobile World Congress. To top it off, the Symbian Foundation unveiled a lighthearted new branding image at MWC '09, capturing the creativity and daring it no doubt hopes its new open environment will foster in the months ahead.

Whose profile is falling: Android. The biggest question on almost everyone's lips throughout Mobile World Congress 2009: "Where are all the Android phones?" For all of the new or forthcoming Android devices announced in Barcelona (and there were a few), most attendees seemed to expect many more handsets based on Google's fledgling mobile OS.

The biggest news: HTC and Vodafone announced the HTC Magic, the operator's first Android device and the handset maker's second, following on the heels of T-Mobile USA's G1. Scheduled for release this spring in the U.K., Spain, Germany, France and Italy, the HTC Magic is smaller than the G1, doing away with its predecessor's slide-out keyboard. Other features include a 3.2-inch HVGA touch screen and trackball navigator, a Webkit browser, Bluetooth, WiFi, HSDPA/WCDMA (900/2100MHz) and a 3.2-megapixel camera.

Both LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics also were expected to formally introduce Android phones, and neither delivered. LG did confirm it will release a number of Android-based devices before the year is out. Samsung, on the other hand, said days prior to Mobile World Congress it would not launch its first Android device until the second half of this year. Samsung's senior vice president of strategy Omar Khan later told FierceWireless the company's decision to announce it would not launch an Android phone until the second half of 2009 was misconstrued as a delay, and that despite Internet hype to the contrary, Samsung never had any plans to debut an Android device in Barcelona.

During a panel discussion on the state of the mobile Internet that included Google vice president of engineering Vic Gundotra, moderator Rajeev Chand, managing director and senior equity research analyst at Rutberg & Co., said he too was surprised by the relatively scarcity of Android devices introduced at Mobile World Congress 2009, and asked whether creating an environment around the OS has proven more difficult than Google anticipated. "It takes time," Gundotra responded. "We're very patient."

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