Nokia Aims Software At Low-End Phones
Nokia Corp., having abandoned its ambition to develop a high-end operating system, is shifting its programming efforts toward creating software for its low-end phones, according to people familiar with the matter.
The project is a Linux-based operating system code-named Meltemi, the Greek word for dry summer winds that blow across the Aegean Sea from the north. It is being led by Mary McDowell, the handset maker’s executive vice president in charge of mobile phones, these people say.
A spokesman for Nokia, Doug Dawson, declined to comment on the Finland-based company’s future products or technologies.
Nokia’s attempt to build its own software is another sign that the value in the technology industry is shifting from hardware to software. In the past year, Google Inc.’s Android software has dominated the midrange smartphone market while Apple Inc.’s iPhone, which runs Apple’s iOS software, has captured the high end.
