Mozilla, Foxconn Strike Deal Over Firefox OS Ecosystem
Foxconn is developing hardware and software for Mozilla's Firefox OS platform.
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."
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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X79 Indeed, but anything to get their foot inside the door.Reply
Mozillas mission is to inject openness into the mobile world.
I hope they kick apples closed OS's ass ^^, but even more so googles. -
g-unit1111 I really want to see alternative options to the "great taste / less filling" debate between iOS and Android. I have been reading about Firefox OS and it looks to be a really solid contender. I like WP8 as well. HP had a great product with Web OS but they threw it away. Oh well.Reply -
X79 True... There's also other ones like Tizen and Ubuntu for phones.Reply
I'm rooting for FF OS and Ubuntu. Both are close to Linux! -
army_ant7 Firefox + Foxconn = FireFoxconn? Is that what they called that aforementioned joint event? :PReply