Google Android - The Android Log
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November 13th, 2007 by Head RobotThe Android Log is a weblog featuring stories, links and articles related to the Open Handset Alliance headed up by Google. Questions/Suggestions? Contact the Author.
Android is an open source mobile phone platform based on the Linux operating system and developed by the Open Handset Alliance. The unveiling of the Android platform on 5 November, 2007 was announced with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of 34 hardware, software and telecoms companies devoted to advancing open standards for mobile devices. When released in 2008, the Android platform will be made available under the Apache v2 open-source license.
In July 2005, Google acquired Android Inc., a small startup company based in Palo Alto, CA. Android’s co-founders who went to work at Google included Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger), Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire), Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile), and Chris White (one of the first engineers at WebTV). At the time, little was known about the functions of Android Inc. other than they made software for mobile phones. This began rumors that Google was planning to enter the mobile phone market, although it was unclear at the time as to what function they would perform in that market.
At Google, the team, lead by Rubin, had developed a Linux based mobile device OS which they were marketing to handset makers and carriers on the premise of providing a flexible, customizable system. Tt was reported that Google had already lined up a series of hardware component and software partners and signaled to carriers that it was open to various degrees of cooperation on their part.
In December 2006, speculation that Google would be entering the mobile phone market began to grow once again. Reports from both the BBC and The Wall Street Journal noting that Google wanted “Google search and Google applications on mobile, and it is working hard every day to deliver that.” Print and online media outlets soon began reporting rumors that Google was developing a Google-branded handset. More speculation followed reporting that as Google was defining technical specifications, they were showing prototypes to cellphone manufacturers and network operators. As many as 30 prototype ‘GPhones’ (Google phones) are reported to be operating “in the wild”. Network World reported that Google’s GPhone was actually an open source software phone operating system, rather than a specific hardware device like the iPhone. Phoronix had reported that Google was looking to team up on the GPhone with OpenMoko, a project to create a smartphone platform using free software, including the Linux kernel.
Portions of this page were sourced from Wikipedia - here.