HP Willing to License webOS to Other Device Makers: CEO

By

Hewlett-Packard’s newly-inherited webOS platform may soon be made available to select third-party hardware partners, HP CEO Léo Apotheker suggested on Wednesday.

The webOS platform, which was picked up by HP as part of last year’s Palm acquisition, has so far been unique to homegrown devices. Apotheker told attendees at the Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital conference in California that the computer giant would consider licensing the operating system to third-party device manufacturers in an effort to spur its adoption rates.

“It’s not correct to believe that it should only be on HP devices,” Apotheker told the audience. “There are all kinds of other people who want to make whatever kind of hardware they make and would like to connect them to the Internet. We’ll make it available to enterprises and to SMBs.”

In response to a hypothetical question about what he would do if HTC wanted to build a webOS-powered handset, Apotheker said he would be “open” to the conversation.

Jon Rubinstein, HP’s webOS chief and former Palm CEO, treaded a bit more lightly than Apotheker, telling an audience at Qualcomm’s Uplinq conference that, “HP is more than willing to partner with one or two special companies,” but the company “is not interested in being in the general licensing business,” according to PC World.

Apotheker’s comments come just a few months after he vowed to make better use of WebOS. He told Bloomberg in March that webOS is not just for phones, printers and tablets anymore. Come next year, HP will make the operating system available on all of its desktop and laptop computers.

HP’s desire to break into the computing OS space is a clear indication of its dissatisfaction with the platform’s success rate in the mobile phone sector. Currently, webOS accounts for just 4 percent of the smartphone market, well behind industry leaders Android, Apple and RIM, according to Nielsen Mobile Insights.

Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2011, taking place Sept. 13-15, 2011, in Austin, Texas. ITEXPO offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It’s also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. To register, click here.




Beecher Tuttle is a TechZone360 contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Jennifer Russell

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]

TechZone360 Contributor

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Related Articles

Enhancing Cybersecurity Measures for Modern Businesses

By: Contributing Writer    7/2/2025

Cyberattacks are rising, and businesses of all sizes feel the pressure. Small companies often think they're too small to be targets. They aren't. Hack…

Read More

Lessons Learned from Enterprise Oracle Cloud Migrations

By: Contributing Writer    7/1/2025

Switching to Oracle Cloud can feel daunting. Security risks, unexpected expenses, and performance troubles often turn what seems like an effortless up…

Read More

Protecting Business Assets with Smarter Security Frameworks

By: Contributing Writer    7/1/2025

Protecting your business is more challenging than ever. Cyber threats are increasing every day. Hackers target small and large businesses alike, searc…

Read More

Emerging Trends in Technology and Their Impact on Future Innovations

By: Contributing Writer    7/1/2025

Technology is changing faster than ever. Business owners often struggle to keep up. What's trending today might be outdated tomorrow. Falling behind c…

Read More

Tech Podcast Award Winners Bring Excitement and Enthusiasm to a Range of Important Tech Topics

By: TMCnet Staff    6/18/2025

Tech Podcast Award winners produce engaging, informative, and often entertaining content, bringing valuable insight from industry front lines to the e…

Read More