Canonical, the company behind Linux-based Ubuntu OS has confirmed a partnership deal with an unnamed smartphone maker to release a Ubuntu-based smartphone next year.
The popular Linux-based operating system is making its entry into the fiercely competitive smartphone market. After a failed attempt to launch its own high-end Ubuntu smartphone in August, Canonical is not giving up easily on the idea of making it in the smartphone market. Mark Shuttleworth, Chief Executive Officer of Canonical revealed that his company has found a manufacturing partner, but remained secretive about the name of the firm, according to CNET.
It is clear that Ubuntu will make a grand entry into the smartphone market, considering a strong fan-base of its desktop OS. The company will launch its first high-end Touch OS-based smartphone sometime next year and utilize its carrier partnership with Vodafone, Verizon, Deutsche Telecom, T-Mobile, 3, EE, KT, SK Telecom and PT to pitch sales.
Canonical showed off the it's Ubuntu Touch OS for smartphones earlier this year before it fell short of $20 million on Indiegogo to launch Ubuntu Edge.
"We have concluded our first set of agreements to ship Ubuntu on mobile phones," Shuttleworth told CNET. "We've shifted gears from 'making a concept' to 'it's going to ship.' That has a big impact on the team."
"We are now pretty much at the board level on four household brands. They sell a lot of phones all over the world, in emerging and fully emerged markets, to businesses and consumers."
Ubuntu's Touch OS will go in direct competition with dominant operating systems like Android and iOS and others that are growing at a faster rate like Windows Phone. But Ubuntu is confident that it can easily win over Android developers considering the similarities both the operating systems share.
"I think the key difference between us and Windows 8 is that we're based on Linux, just like Android," Shuttleworth added. "That means web apps and native apps designed for Android are much closer to being on Ubuntu than they are to being on Windows."
