What do Symbian (News - Alert), Research in Motion, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Palm and the LiMo Foundation all have in common?

 

Each wants its software platform to be the de facto standard in mobile computing.

And while competition and choice are a good thing, having too much choice, in terms of mobile operating systems, really mucks up the works for software developers, network operators and consumers.

Perhaps a better approach is to develop mobile applications that can run on any OS?

Apparently Verizon (News - Alert) Wireless is on board with the idea: The carrier announced this week that it plans to join the Joint Innovation Lab (JIL), a program established by China Mobile, Softbank (News - Alert) and parent company Vodafone that developers can use to create new mobile applications.

Currently the lab, which was established about a year ago, is focused on creating a single platform for developers upon which they can build a range of mobile widgets for smartphones and low-cost handsets, regardless of which operating system the phone runs on.

Later this year the JIL will launch a set of tools to encourage innovation among mobile developers. These will include, but may not be limited to, a common mobile widgets specification; easy-to-use developer kits; and an online repository, distribution and payment mechanism to ensure developers can roll out their products to customers worldwide.

 

With the addition of Verizon Wireless, one of the largest mobile operators in the U.S., the JIL now has a combined customer reach of approximately one billion consumers.

 

“This partnership will enable four of the world’s leading mobile operators to pool their combined expertise, innovation and scale for the gain of customers across the globe,” said JIL Chairman Masayoshi Son, in a press release. “As well as driving innovation in the mobile developer world, this initiative is set to empower consumers by giving them access to a range of easy-to-use and compelling web applications that will enable them to get even more benefits from their handsets.”

 

Mobile widgets are mini applications that reside on a handset to retrieve relevant information from the Web -- such as weather reports, sports updates, and travel timetables. Not only do they give users one-touch access to the resources they use most, they can also be used to customize the look and feel of the user’s device.

 

The JIL mobile widgets specification is set to enrich these services further by enabling developers to access both handset and network functionality such as the address book, camera, location information and billing in a secure environment.

 

JIL has been working in close cooperation with a range of industry standards bodies such as the OMTP and the GSMA (News - Alert) to outline specifications that will make it easier for developers to create widgets that run on a wide range of handsets, operating systems and networks.

 

Verizon Wireless’ decision to join JIL is in keeping with its strategy to provide its own applications, such as VCast, on its phones, as opposed to relying on third party software makers to develop applications for its network and devices. The strategy makes sense when you consider that it allows Verizon Wireless to maintain complete control over the development of new applications (including how they run on its network) and the timing of when those applications are brought to market.

 

At the CTIA (News - Alert) Wireless show this week, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam said he wasn’t so much concerned with who wins the operating system wars, but rather whether or not future applications developed by the company will be able to run on multiple OSs.

McAdam said Verizon Wireless is already developing games and other applications for future phones on its network. Obviously the company is banking on the fact that consumers will spend billions on mobile applications over the next 10 years. But there are so many initiatives out there in the mobile space that it is almost impossible to predict how this will play out.