It begins: gPhone speculation

Yesterday we mentioned an unconfirmed rumor that Google was in the later stages of introducing its own mobile phone. After such a rumor makes its rounds, the natural reaction is for everyone to put it in some kind of perspective. We’ve found one we like, so we’d like to share it with you. This idea centers around Google acting in a way Danger — the company that developed the Sidekick — did in its infancy. To us, it makes as much sense as what anyone else is saying. When the idea for the Sidekick sprang up, Danger was mostly a software company. It had developed the idea for a platform that would be unique among a mundane mobile device market. But since there was no phone out there that could fulfill their needs, they were necessarily forced to create their own. Hence, the Sidekick. With the device’s success, Danger was able to assign the manufacturing of the device to Sharp, while profiting off a per-user software license and a share of all third-party application sales. In essence, by creating the phone Danger was able to excel at its forte: software. Google is in a similar boat. They specialize in software, yet have found it daunting to get this software installed on current mobile phones. The solution, then, would be to release their own phone which utilizes its own software. Hence, the gPhone. That’s not all, though. In this world of mergers and acquisitions, it’s not unfeasible to see Danger be bought out by a competitor. See where we’re going with this?

What might be even more exciting, however, would be to see Google bring Danger into the fold; freed from the compromise of a traditional carrier, the possibility is there for third-party open access to seamless server/client connectivity. A Google Sidekick? Now that could spell Danger to the old-school telcos.

A very interesting concept. We wouldn’t think it as good an idea if Google didn’t win a portion of the 700 MHz spectrum auction. But if they do and bring Danger aboard, they could make a splash very quickly in the wireless industry. [Google-phone.com]]]>