The last two days have seen the Symbian Foundation lay down the gauntlet in the next round of wars in the mobile space. With the prize being 1 billion consumers who already use mobile phones, the stakes are high. Both organisations are fighting for the hearts and minds of software developers, because everyone realises the markets are too big for even a few companies to dominate.
There are subtle differences in approach that make the two "ecosystems" fascinating to watch. Note I didn't say Apple versus Nokia. Clearly Nokia is driving a lot of the enablers and sees it as a way to bring software innovation to their phones. They believe that harnessing independent developers will be good for them. And they claim not to want to exercise as much control as Apple, who reserve the right to refuse to distribute sofware through their online store.
For me the success of Symbian will depend on how they drive hardware prices down and enable more mass market acceptance and volume for their platform. Apple will not likely play more than a niche role based on their past performance in other sectors. A big niche, but a niche.
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