Nokia Corp. introduced a new Internet-browsing device that represents a new market for the world’s largest handset vendor as well as an entirely new software strategy.
Nokia’s new personal digital assistant-sized 770 Internet Tablet supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and features an 800 by 480 widescreen display and stylus for Internet browsing. It is scheduled to sell in the third quarter for $350 and will be released in Europe and the Americas. Nokia said it will sell the device through broadband carriers, retail outlets and online.
The gadget is notable in that it is Nokia’s first offering that does not support wide-area wireless networks.
“It’s intended primarily for home use,” said Janne Jormalainen, vice president of convergence products in the multimedia division of Nokia. “This is very close to a PC (personal computer) product.”
But perhaps the most notable aspect of the device is that it runs the open-source Linux operating system. Nokia has in years past sworn off Linux, explaining that there are too many legal concerns surrounding the technology to make it viable. However, the 770 represents a reversal on that position. Jormalainen said the company plans to release additional devices operating on the Linux operating system.
Indeed, the device coincides with Nokia’s new hard-line approach to open-source technology. Nokia said it will open its patents to Linux developers, thereby supporting the open-source, community-based development of the platform. However, Nokia said it would withhold its patents from companies that have laid legal claims on Linux. Thus, Nokia is attempting to discourage companies from protecting their Linux patents with the threat of legal action against them. Nokia outlined its new stance in a statement posted on its Web site.
“By issuing the patent statement, Nokia wishes to encourage others to follow in order to foster the open development model and innovation for the benefit of developers and users alike,” the company said in the statement.
“We think that’s the right way of developing this platform,” Jormalainen explained. “If somebody’s on the wrong side of the fence, we can obviously do something to them.”
Jormalainen said Nokia developed several new software components for the Linux platform while building its 770 device, additions that the company will release into the open-source Linux community for other developers to use.
SCO Group Inc., IBM Corp., Red Hat and others are currently embroiled in a legal battle over various aspects of the Linux operating system. The platform is currently free to developers, but companies like SCO claim parts of Linux are protected by patents and are therefore not free.
Nokia is not the first handset maker to dabble in Linux. Companies including Motorola Inc. and NEC Corp. have installed scaled-down versions of the Linux OS into their devices. Indeed, the market for Linux in the handset has given rise to Linux vendors like MontaVista Software and Trolltech. Such vendors sell versions of Linux that are modified for use in phones, as well as associated engineering and development services. However, Nokia’s 770 runs the desktop version of Linux, and Jormalainen said the company internally developed its Linux device.
“We think that the open-source licensing model … is a good model,” Jormalainen said.
Further, Jormalainen said Nokia will release updates to its Linux operating system, revisions that 770 users will be able to download into their devices. Jormalainen said the company will release its first revision in the first half of next year, which will include Voice over Internet Protocol and instant messaging technology.
Jormalainen said Nokia intends to continue using the Symbian operating system in its line of smart phones.
