HP CEO: Android Will Become Closed Source

HP CEO Meg Whitman has been talking smack about Android again after calling Google's highly popular OS "fragmented" just weeks ago. This time she claimed that Android will eventually be closed-source because of Google's approved purchase of Motorola.

This of course comes from a company that purchased Palm seemingly for its OS, failed in its attempt to launch products based on said software, and then decided to release it to the developer community under the open-source Apache license. Earlier this week HP released the source code to the webOS web browser and other code, the second stage in its overall roll out to get webOS to developers by September.

Google revealed back in August 2011 that it would buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion USD. The deal was just approved by European and U.S. regulators this week. Google claims that Android will remain an open-source OS despite claims stating otherwise. The company also said it would assure fair licensing for Motorola patents.

During a speech at the HP Global Partner conference in Las Vegas, Whitman said it could take up to four years for the complete impact of webOS to be felt. But that's OK. The industry needs another OS, she said, and HP has plenty of patience. She said she's actually rather excited about webOS, and pledged that the company will continue to contribute to its development.

Talk about webOS was rather short in her speech, as she moved on to tell about how she planned to change things once she became CEO. "When I came in I thought the most important thing I could do is remove noise from the system and create stability," Whitman said.

  • cptnjarhead
    Meg, you are on track with open webOS, please just stick with that.
    Reply
  • wiyosaya
    Exactly the kind of comment we would expect from the CEO of a competing company.
    Reply
  • Change for change sake. This sounds more like "Daddy, look what I can do!" than any sort of simplification for end users.
    Reply
  • kawininjazx
    Maybe closed source isn't a bad thing. Think about it, Ubuntu is really nice, but you have to be a power user to get everything working right and you have to occasionally figure out problems with it. When you compare it to Windows or OSX, it is not nearly as solid.
    Reply
  • Northwestern
    Translation: "My mobile open-source OS isn't as popular so I'm going to insult the most popular open-source OS!"
    Reply
  • captaincharisma
    LOL i think he meant webOS. that sounds like something HP would do to open source software
    Reply
  • soccerplayer88
    kawininjazxMaybe closed source isn't a bad thing. Think about it, Ubuntu is really nice, but you have to be a power user to get everything working right and you have to occasionally figure out problems with it. When you compare it to Windows or OSX, it is not nearly as solid.
    Closed source prevents innovation. We'd still be stuck with Commodore 64's with that logic.
    Reply
  • chomlee
    So this is like in Rocky after he went down the second time and then got back up and started shouting at appollo creed "my momma can hit harder than that".

    I like WebOS - Really! I just think it is a little too early to be trash talking an operating system that has done fairly well while your operating system has had numerous attemps and failed. To be honest, the last failure was all on HP, I think they gave up too early.
    Reply
  • belardo
    Meg Whitman is an idiot and is following the one that just left. Yes, Android is fragmented... but ICS should and future releases should tighten it up. Inteface skins is not a major issue, its the deployment of updates.

    4 years we'll feel the effects of WebOS??? Really? I guess any day now we'll suddenly be hit in the face with the effects of Linux on desktops, Microsoft and Apple will be DESTROYED.

    WebOS is at the best place to be for it to survive... open source. Its a tinkering OS... not much else.
    Reply
  • belardo
    chomlee I just think it is a little too early to be trash talking an operating system that has done fairly well while your operating system has had numerous attemps and failed. To be honest, the last failure was all on HP, I think they gave up too early. HP did not give up early, they DON'T have the talent or culture to make WebOS successful. HP doesn't actually INVENT anything... they hand their specs to contractors to meet certain price points and out poops out a product from China.

    WebOS is a good OS, not perfect - but for sure, deserved a better run. What I experienced with the Touch-pad was an unfinished product with crappy support and cheap materials. Palm is officially dead - the company that made PIM mainstream.

    But Android and Apple will continue to improve their OSes and leave WebOS in the dust.
    Reply