Symbian Describes Roadmap to Open-source Platform

Nov 21, 2008 20:16 Naoki Asakawa, Nikkei Electronics

The founders of the Symbian Foundation explained how it will provide a Symbian OS-based open-source software platform for mobile phones at a press conference in Tokyo Nov 20, 2008.

First, they will unify "S60," "UIQ" and "MOAP(S)" Symbian OS middleware solutions and offer the unified platform for free to the Symbian Foundation's member companies by the first half of 2009. It is planning to disclose the platform's source codes in June 2010.

S60, which is developed by Nokia, will be the base middleware. Motorola's and Sony Ericsson's UIQ and NTT DoCoMo's MOAP(S) will be integrated by adding their functions to S60, excluding the functions that S60 already has.

Commenting on the platform's backward compatibility with existing software assets, Lee Williams, senior vice president for S60 Software R&D at Nokia, who was appointed executive director of the Symbian Foundation, said, "If the software is developed on the current S60, it will be able to run on the new platform as well."

As for software developed on UIQ and MOAP(S), it may be possible to maintain compatibility if telecommunications carriers add new middleware. NTT DoCoMo, for example, considers maintaining its software's compatibility by further developing its "Operator Pack," which contains the company's proprietary software technologies. Nokia's "Carbide" will be used as the development environment for the new platform.

Toward the goal of releasing the source code in June 2010, the Symbian Foundation members said they are closely examining whether it will be possible to make S60, UIQ and MOAP(S) open source.

"There are several tens of millions of source code lines," Williams said. "So, the process will take quite a bit of time."

The source codes will be provided using "Eclipse Public License 1.0." Along with the source codes, a common API used for Web/UI execution environment (runtime), which is developed by third parties, to access the hardware will become available at the same time.

In line with the announcement, seven companies joined the 52 supporting firms in the Symbian Foundation. They are three Japanese companies, Kanrikogaku Kenkyusho, Renesas Technology and SoftBank Mobile, and Borqs of China, Comarch of Poland, HiQ International of Sweden and Larsen & Toubro Infotech of India.

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