Android drives Linux-based smart phone market

Led by the success of Google's Android, Linux-enabled smart phones are expected to comprise 33 percent of the worldwide smart phone market by 2012, according to ABI Research. With more than 60,000 smart phones shipping per day, Android has catapulted ahead of other Linux mobile platforms.

"Due to its low cost and ability to be easily modified, Linux in the mobile market today is nearly as disruptive as Linux was in server markets a decade ago," says senior analyst Victoria Fodale.

Much of the interest that handset OEMs and mobile operators have in Android can be traced to its flexibility. "The Android platform can be modified so that OEMs can differentiate their products," says Fodale, "and the licensing terms allow OEMs to innovate while still protecting proprietary work."

But although Google has built early momentum, Android is not without competition. Industry heavyweights Intel, Nokia, and Samsung recently announced two other new Linux-based OS, bada and MeeGo. The bada platform is also kernel-configurable so that it can run either on the Linux kernel or a RTOS kernel—which makes bada applicable to a wider range of devices than just smart phones.