Google is lending considerable engineering
talent, brand cachet, and marketing muscle to the project. Phones powered by Android are becoming best sellers for hardware makers including Motorola and such carriers as Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile
USA. Meantime, developers are hard at work not only refining Android but also building thousands of games, tools, and other applications for Android devices.
By itself, the prospect of Google marketing its own phone isn't causing much consternation. Indeed, a Google phone would raise Android's profile all the more, benefiting Google's partners. But, "If you lose an edge [to Google], it does impact you," one partner notes.
advertisement
advertisement