GigaOM

Great initiative - I think VC could take a lesson from it — i.e. lets identify the problem and challenge entrepreneurs to come up with solution - and cut down round of negotiations of understanding whole business model - which could save loads of disappointed souls.

I’m going to be all over this, and I think you’ll find independent developers from all over the world will be to. There’s never been a development environment for phones that provides this much functionality (full access to the phone) at zero cost. No development license, no distribution license, no handset purchase.

This $10m challenge is smart too. By splitting it in two, they’ll build up the hype in March and still encourage more development for release with the handset.

This entire thing seems like a solution looking for a problem rather than the other way around.

@Nick: Have you used a mobile phone lately? Let alone tried to write an application for one? If so the problem should be pretty apparent.

The idea of being able to write a mobile phone app that can take advantage of things like GPS and SMS and isn’t walled in to a Java Middlet is pretty appealing from a development perspective. Thinking of what developers will make with this is very appealing from a phone user’s perspective.

Poor Palm.

Poor Access.

Google Unveils ‘Early Look’ Mobile (Android) SDK

Just a week or so following its first official acknowledgement of plans to deliver (through the newly founded Open Handset Alliance) its much-hyped mobile platform, Google today released its Android software developer kit (SDK). The company is inviting…

Interesting. Seems like a great boon for Google (propellerhead) fanatics. Hopefully the legions of open source wizards that’ll be flocking to this will let the $10M bribe inspire them to create a truly warm, more engaging experience, and an accompanying marketing outreach program that’s geared towards the larger marketplace. Maybe even innovate. That’d be cool. Otherwise, it’s just another phone.

This will definitely turn the mobile market on its head.

A new Google group has been created for developers. http://groups.google.com/group/android-sdk

solution looking for a problem ?

Maybe I’m missing something but I agree with Reto that this open approach (not necessarily the money) is going to shake things up quickly and in a big and positive way.

I’m already anxious to get rid of my nasty Palm Treo software (and maybe the whole phone) given that it won’t even synch anymore without me losing all my data. I envision a mobile future where my phone, PC, GIS, picture, and online needs all merge seamlessly, are accessible from all my devices easily and without any extra steps, and where I pay nothing for services in exchange for viewing ads or pay something if I want to get rid of the ads.

Open Handset is going to make that happen fast, and I wish them well.

The fall of the Berlin Wall comes to mind! Exciting times ahead :P

It will get ugly for the carriers if they resist Android handsets but I’m still chewing on Nokia’s fate. I doubt they’ll will want to prop up Symbian forever; allowing Samsung and HTC to blow past them.

I imagine the move from Palm and Win mobile will be fast and furious.

The idea of awarding developers is great - this way they get a lots of heads thinking about possibilities of building cool apps for mobiles and it also generates interest/news/hype for the platform in time for second half of next year when the phones supporting Android are really out in market.

Mobile Web News, Week of November 12, 2007

[...] would never blog about Silicon Valley initatives, because there are bloggers who are way more resourceful than I am in this game. However, Google’s Android SDK is [...]

I agree with reto on the open mobile platform. If you look at other mobile platforms( exceptions like symbian), there are lot of restrictions when it comes to accessing the core functionality of handset. From my personal experience, if your startup depends on handsets vendors, then chances of success is in the mercy of vendor. Open mobile platform is great start, I’m very positive- this will have a major impact in the way applications are written on handset. I have installed the android on my laptop, was able to build the app in less than 5 minutes. Pretty cool..

Interesting things begin popping out.

===
Due to a technical limitation, currently it’s not possible to deploy a
library so that it is accessible from multiple applications. Each
application that wishes to use a given library must have a copy of that
library included in its .apk file. Unfortunately, the only way to deploy a
library so that’s accessible to all installed applications is to include it
with the core system image — that is, include it with the handset itself.

Regarding SIP specifically, there is an XMPP service that can be used to
pass messages between devices:
http://code.google.com/android/reference/com/google/android/xmppServi...

This will allow two devices to identify each other when online, and exchange
messages. Currently to use that service you must have a Google Login.

====
picked here - http://groups.google.com/group/android-developers/browse_thread/thread/d9960c479d5ab8f2/f5544f30ea4f389a#f5544f30ea4f389a

In other words, you can have your Android in any flavor, as long as it is Google-based.

More “open source” revelations to come, I guess.

Gud,Work…let me participate and win…..

[...] asta nu înseamnă că treci toată linia de telefoane mobile pe Android). Probabil de aici şi potul imens de 10 milioane de dolari (Scoble spune pe bună dreptate că e ceva în neregulă cu API-ul tocmai din cauza sumei de bani [...]

[...] coverage: Engadget Techcrunch Gigaom [...]

I think this won’t take off untill devices start to ship. Unleashing the real power can only be done with the hardware, not with the emulator.

[...] schon viel gesagt. Die zweite große Googleoffensive, das SDK Android für Mobiltelefone, wurde ebenfalls diese Tage veröffentlicht. Auch das folgt dem Plattformgedanken. Übrigens: Bei meinen Kollegen von neuerdings.com gibt [...]

[...] blog. On the other you have Google’s Android and their Dalvic VM. Looks like the lawyers and Java programmers are the winners, perhaps all of us as well. Tags: HEH, SHINY, GEEKDOM, TELECOM 14 Nov 2007 [...]

[...] attitude. Open for everyone! hack hack hack! experiment, develop, do whatever you want to, “I even give you money for doing so” -type-of-attitude [...]

[...] have started to tinker with Android, and coming up with applications or application concepts. Maybe it is that $10 million contest, which has got the tinkerers tinkering. Check out this one called CallFreq. The demo shows that you [...]

[...] both technology and business, especially when they are commercially supported and community-backed. Android is the Open Handset Alliance’s open and free mobile platform, backed by Google and 30 other [...]

[...] more about it at TECHCRUNCH and GIGAOM Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and [...]

[...] know for some people Google’s announcement about Android wasn’t as exciting as the expectation of hearing them announce an actual “Gphone” [...]

[...] limited by cell-phone service providers that subsidize handsets. But Google’s Android and the Open Handset Alliance will help put in motion a new era of “openness,” and consumers will be the direct [...]