On Monday Foxconn Technology Group signed a deal with Mozilla to co-develop devices and apps based on Firefox OS, thus becoming the 19th member of the Firefox OS alliance. The company is reportedly already working on five devices, one of which may have been a Firefox OS tablet that was on display at a joint event in Taipei held by the two companies.
"Foxconn is extending past its origins in original design manufacturing to a combination of integrated software and hardware offerings, which extends its domain to the open operating platform and positively carries out its integration plan of hardware, software, content, and services," the company said.
Young Liu, the general manager of Foxconn innovation Digital System Business Group (iDSBG), said that the company is developing a brand new integrated approach to providing hardware, software, content, and services. Firefox OS fits perfectly within its vision of "eight screens, one network, and one cloud" because it's based on HTML5, a key component in developing applications that work on a number of devices and form factors.
“Because of our shared vision, we are excited to work with Mozilla," Liu said. "Firefox OS from Mozilla is based on HTML5 and open web technologies. The whole idea perfectly matches to the strategies promoted by Foxconn. We believe that the integration of software and hardware development will offer greater benefits to our customers and consumers."
Foxconn is reportedly setting up an Internet data center and an HTML5 app research and development center at the Kaohsiung Software Park, located in southern Taiwan, by the end of 2013. The company also plans to recruit 500 to 1000 software engineers by the end of the year.
“We are very excited about the cooperation with Foxconn and we are glad to see more partners supporting the Firefox OS and the open Web.” Dr. Li Gong, SVP of Mobile Devices, President of Asia Operations, and CEO of Mozilla Taiwan. "This cooperation demonstrates the full potential of Firefox OS, the open Web mobile operating system, to enable not only the smartphone but also a wide range of mobile devices."
