ZTE Plans to Launch Firefox OS Smartphone in Europe in the end of 2013
ZTE may launched Firefox OS-powered smartphone in European market by the end of this year, Bloomberg reports.
China’s second-biggest maker of phone equipment may also offer a device based on Mozilla’s Firefox mobile operating system in the U.S. this year, Cheng said in an interview at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Mozilla is better known for its Firefox Web browser.
ZTE is seeking partnerships to offer devices with the new operating system to reduce its reliance on Google Inc.’s Android, which dominates the smartphone market with a 75 percent share of shipments, according to IDC. ZTE is expanding in mobile devices and cloud computing, where sales growth is faster than its traditional equipment business.
“We closely monitor the ecosystem and how it evolves,” Cheng said. “If that is ready and if consumer studies support that data, then we may launch one in U.S. also this year.”Vice president of products at Mozilla Jay Sullivan confirmed the company is working with ZTE, as well as Qualcomm and TCL on Firefox OS-based devices.
Mozilla had announced Firefox OS in July 2012 as a fully open alternative to Android, promising first devices would arrive in 2013. It seems they’ll be on schedule, though the road ahead is long and hard, especially since Android and iOS are quickly overtaking market share from smaller competitors.