The latest smartwatch report claims that LG is coming out with one that will be powered by the webOS operating system.
A person familiar with the situation said at CES in Las Vegas that the platform will serve as an alternative to Google's Android operating system, which has been used to power the G Watch R and LG's other smartwatches, according to The Wall Street Journal.
"We're going to slowly try to build an (software) ecosystem around areas we can have more control over," the person said, who remained unnamed.
Another source said the Korean electronics giant is working on another smartwatch that can make calls without needing to be connected to another phone, but did not say which operating system the watch will run on, Tom's Guide reported.
WebOS was first introduced by former smartphone maker Palm in 2009 for its Pre smartphones, but the company was unsuccessful in winning over consumers with the platform. Despite the operating system have several bugs, it had many features that current iOS and Android devices use today, such as cloud-based data syncing, address book integration and "cards" for multitasking apps.
Hewlett-Packard would buy webOS soon afterwards and experience a flop with the devices it added the platform too before selling it to LG in 2013, The Wall Street Journal reported. However, LG has since used the operating system for televisions and other products, and the first source said the company is thinking about adding it to its home appliances.
The purchase has since brought LG a good deal of success, executives say, with the company saying this past June that it shipped over 1.1 million TVs running on webOS. LG is also looking to have all of its Internet-connected TVs powered by the platform this year.
The first person said the webOS-powered smartwatch will make its ways to consumers by early 2016, adding that LG is not looking to make its smartphones run on webOS, as those devices will continue to run on Android, Tom's Guide reported.
"There is a prevailing system and people are used to that, which is hard to change," the person said.
