“Apple and Google have long dominated the smartphone market. Now a new giant, Tizen, is rising to challenge their dominance. The Linux-based operating system is gaining steam faster than expected, with Samsung confirming that it will launch a number of Tizen-based devices this year. This suggests that it has the potential to make a major dent in the current market leaders’ share.
Right now, Google’s GOOG -1.62% Android holds about 70% of the smartphone market, and Apple’s AAPL -3.41%iOS holds about 14%. Google generates only a small percentage of its revenue from Android, so Tizen is not likely to have much impact on the company’s stock. However, Apple could get hurt. A market-share loss of even 2%-3% will hurt Apple shares; moreover, if Tizen takes off, it will add to the negative perceptions about future growth prospects. Microsoft, Nokia and Research In Motion are other companies that could be adversely affected.
Tizen is an open-source operating system offering a uniform user experience across a variety of devices, including tablets, smartphones, smart TVs, and in-vehicle entertainment. The company itself has a long history behind it. Samsung’s collaboration with the Enlightenment Foundation Libraries (EFL) for years was known as LiMo, or the Linux platform for mobile. LiMo’s name was then changed to Tizen in 2011 when Intel joined the project, with Sprint also agreeing to become part of the association. Shortly thereafter, an alpha code called Magnolia was released, with Tizen 2.0 expected to be released this month.
One of the chief advantages of the operating system is….”
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