{"id":44079,"date":"2009-11-18T14:23:49","date_gmt":"2009-11-18T19:23:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gigaom.com\/?p=80348"},"modified":"2009-11-18T14:23:49","modified_gmt":"2009-11-18T19:23:49","slug":"nokia-to-stake-its-future-on-maemo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/44079","title":{"rendered":"Nokia to Stake Its Future on Maemo"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"Nokia is inching closer to declaring its allegiance to Maemo, according to unidentified (but loose-lipped) executives, and will ditch Symbian in favor of the Linux-based OS <\/a>on its flagship N-series handsets by 2012. But given the massive head start Apple’s iPhone, RIM’s BlackBerry and the Android OS are enjoying, Nokia will have a lot of catching up to do.<\/p>\n

Members of the Maemo marketing team let the plans slip <\/a>at a London event last night, forcing Nokia to respond<\/a> with an official statement that any speculation about its road map for 2012 is “completely premature.” But we’ve heard that kind of talk before<\/a> from Nokia, and it appears the manufacturer is simply paying lip service to its established OS as it steps up its Maemo agenda.<\/p>\n

Nokia spent $410 million last year<\/a> to buy out the remaining shares of Symbian, and the company earlier this year took a $630 million loan<\/a> from the European Investment Bank to help develop the operating system. Also, it clearly must continue to support Symbian given the massive footprint it has built around the world.<\/p>\n

But Nokia continues to lose ground in the U.S. market<\/a> and is watching its dominance erode in its home market of Western Europe<\/a> as sexier, more user-friendly phones gain traction. The company has received solid reviews for its N900, a Maemo-based phone that started shipping last week<\/a>. If the Finnish company is to become a real player in the era of the superphone, it will do it on the back of Maemo.<\/p>\n

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