Google says not developing mobile phone

“Google has poured cold water on claims it is developing a mobile phone,” Asher Moses reports for The Sydney Morning Herald.

“The search giant said it was more logical to form partnerships with existing handset makers instead,” Moses reports.

Moses reports, “Google’s South-East Asia managing director of sales and operations, Richard Kimber, yesterday echoed statements made by Google’s chief internet evangelist, Vinton Cerf, that building hardware would be a dramatic shift in the company’s business model. ‘At this point in time, we are very focused on the software, not the phone,’ The Australian Financial Review today quoted Kimber as saying during his speech at the Search Engine Room conference in Sydney.”

Moses reports, “Kimber said Google was keen on porting its search and other technologies to mobile devices, but it was not interested in entering the crowded handset market, as Apple has recently done with its iPhone.”

Full article here.

MacDailyNews Note: One of Apple iPhone’s many features is Google Maps. More info here.

Related articles:
Apple and Google working together on ‘many more’ new projects – March 05, 2007
Apple debuts iPhone: touchscreen mobile phone + widescreen iPod + Internet communicator – January 09, 2007
Google CEO Dr. Eric Schmidt joins Apple’s Board of Directors – August 29, 2006

19 Comments

  1. The persistence of Google phone rumors and the “missing apps” on the iPhone make me think that Google just may develop stuff for the iPhone aside from the Google Maps and rumor people mistook it as Google developing its own phone. As impressive as having Google Maps on the iPhone is, I don’t think that it required such a close working relationship as told by Apple or Google executives. There might be more to it than revealed.

  2. Google would be making a mistake to get in to the phone business from a hardware perspective. They are an internet service company and would best serve their shareholders in software innovations when it comes to information.

  3. Spring is here. AppleTV is shipping. iPhone is a couple of months away. Enough of this rubbish and start coming out with Macs and Leopard. Last I saw, this website is called “Macdailynews.com”. Not “iPhonedailynews.com”. Not “appletvdailynews.com”.

  4. Schmidt said that Apple and Google have similar visions and competitors. That’s why he’s on the Apple board and why he was on-stage at the iPhone intro. So it always sounded ridiculous to me that Google was working on a phone.

    Obviously, Google is trying to get its Maps and other software bundled on as many handsets as it can, and before Yahoo or anyone else does. Apple’s iPhone intro was the catalyst to spur the other handset makers into action on a larger-screen, Web-based handset. And provide the opening for Google to shop its apps. The rumor mill mistook this activity for a Google phone.

    Going forward, it is safe to say that Apple will focus on delivering consumer hardware products, while Google will deliver software to use its Web-based ad-supported services. Apple’s hardware products will have Apple software but also Google services. Google’s services will also work on other mfr’s hardware.

  5. Please allow me to finish on the MDN Take:
    “One of Apple iPhone’s many features is Google Maps”… Google has recently added traffic information to their maps as well.

    How much does a GPS that can handle traffic information cost? Well, looking at the TomTom models, you’d pay around $500 for one of these (plus a monthly service fee)

    Combine a smart phone with a GPS that does traffic and what you have is the must have gadget for every driver. This will be one of those “WOW” features that will have everyone talking in June.

  6. WTF? Why does everyone thing that Google can do anything because they’re google, when the fact is all they’ve ever done is web-based services? Google’s making an operating system. Google’s gonna design their own spaceship! And now, they’re making a phone. Since when are they a consumer electronics company? Where is the disconnect with reality?

    Is it just that mainstream journalists talk out of their asses 99% of the time when it comes to technology?

    Don’t answer that.

  7. ‘Google says not developing mobile phone’

    ‘Apple says not developing video iPods’

    ‘Is it just that mainstream journalists talk out of their asses 99% of the time when it comes to technology?’

    Just technology? (that wasn’t an answer)

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