Smartphone companies shifted positions in the marketplace and announced two new platforms for mobile phones. First, Nokia just purchased the Symbian Foundation, which created the first and most widely used operating system (OS) for mobile phones, and plans to open-source some of the code. Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, AT&T and Samsung are launching a foundation to unite all current Symbian platforms, including the S60, UIQ and MOAP(S). Second, the new LiMo (Linux Mobile) Foundation will supersede the Linux Phone Standards (LiPS) Forum, and accelerate development of a unified open source platform for mobile phones. Major competitors in the space, currently containing one billion mobile phones, are Symbian, Windows Mobile, an emerging mobile Linux movement, Googles Android project, Apples iPhone and RIMs BlackBerry. Expert ABI Research mobile and wireless VP Stuart Carlaw believes Linux Mobile is consolidating behind two major market presences. A Linux mobile solution, the Maemo platform in Nokias Internet tablets, will probably find a niche in the emerging market of mobile Internet devices (MIDs). In March 2008, LiMo released the first edition of its code followed by the introduction a few weeks later of almost 20 handsets from LG Electronics, Motorola, NEC and others. Android phones are reportedly scheduled to appear in late 2008. Symbian isnt Linux-based but is still the dominant mobile platform. Its open-source code wont be available until next year, impacting software developers who will become part of the market value chain. LiMo will probably beat Windows in mid-tier MIDs after 2009. Windows Mobile will probably maintain its healthy presence in the high-end smartphone market, along with other successful proprietary systems such as Symbian, the iPhone, BlackBerry and Sidekick, which deliver a superior user experience by tightly integrating hardware, software and applications.