There’s a land grab underway in MIDs and two high-tech giants will join forces to exploit it.

Intel Corp. and L.M. Ericsson will integrate their technologies for the handheld browsing device market, the companies said.

Both companies recently reported robust quarterly earnings, but at least Ericsson has forecast a “flattish market” for 2009.

The tandem effort will combine Intel’s “Moorestown” MID platform, featuring its “Atom” processor, with Ericsson’s HSPA data solution, which allows the latter vendor to extend its mobile broadband technology beyond laptops to handhelds. Apparently, “Moorestown” will be aimed at MIDs and smartphones.

No word from the two companies yet about deals with device makers, but time-to-market for the platform is forecast by the companies for next year or 2010. The announcement was made yesterday at the Intel Developer Forum in Taipei, Taiwan.

Intel is currently working to reduce the MID platform’s idle power, to prolong device life after each charge, according to the company. Ericsson said its HSPA chip will also integrate with some Linux operating systems.

According to Intel, it is working to make inexpensive laptops and mobile devices with broadband connectivity for emerging markets, where 2 billion to 3 billion people seek Internet access for the first time.

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Section: Wireless Internet