Partners Cheer Confirmed Launch Of Samsung Tizen Android Competitor

Solution providers are cheering Samsung's move to release its own Tizen operating system based-smartphones by the end of the second quarter in a throw-down against Google's Android operating system.

Partners said they see a potential new smartphone operating system from Samsung as an opportunity to drive more innovation in the smartphone market.

"Samsung is trying to find an OS that is capable and more pervasive across all different devices,’ said Ira Grossman, CTO of end user and mobile computing for MCPc, a Cleveland-based national solution provider specializing in mobile solutions with its Anyplace Workspace.

"If anyone can pull this off, it is Samsung," said Grossman.

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By tightly integrating its own Tizen operating system with its smartphones, Samsung is taking a page out of rival Apple's playbook. Samsung is currently involved in a long running patent dispute with Apple that is now before the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California.

"Apple has so much power because they own both the hardware and software and almost mandate that the devices will remain useful," said Grossman.

Samsung is going to have to "communicate with the enterprise on how the OS will affect the user experience and security to meet enterprise requirements," said Grossman. "Enterprise has vastly different needs than the consumer.’

Samsung confirmed Tuesday that it plans to launch smartphones running the Tizen open-source operating system by the end of the second quarter.

Yoon Han-kil, senior vice president of Samsung’s product strategy team, told Reuters that the first Tizen-based smartphone will be a high-end device, with the second aimed at the midmarket.

Samsung partners said moving to its own OS would free Samsung of having to comply with the Android rules and restrictions enforced by Google.

"The thing that could have troubled Samsung is that, unlike Apple, they don't own the whole ecosystem and have been troubled by the carriers' inability to push updates and maintain the operating system," Grossman said. "By taking a page out of Apple's playbook where they own the OS and hardware, they can differentiate their devices more so than today. That is the key. They have been really hamstrung with open-source Android and can't differentiate their products like Apple is able to do."

Grossman said he sees a new Samsung smartphone operating system providing a more robust Internet of Things experience for end users from wearable devices to PCs and tablets and into the data center. "Channel partners love innovation," he said. "It drives more demand for our services."

Samsung did not return calls seeking comment.

Samsung already has smart watches running Tizen, the Linux based OS that it has developed.

In the meantime, Samsung has moved to provide its own enterprise security for Android with the release of its Knox security software. Solution provider partners have welcomed the more robust enterprise security that Knox has brought to the table.

Samsung Partner: It Was Only A Matter Of Time

Douglas Grosfield, CEO of Xylotek Solutions, an Ontario-based solution provider, said he expected Samsung's entry into the smartphone operating system game.

"It was only a matter of time for them to make this move," said Grosfield. "I would be surprised if they didn't.’

With Samsung's proven track record in the mobile industry, Grosfield also believes that Samsung's new OS has a good shot at shaking up the market.

"Everybody likes to see exciting advancements in technology. Samsung has really wrapped their head around on how to attract players in the market," he said. "People like options and there aren’t too many options at this point. It’s a fantastic move for them.’

In February at the wireless industry's largest trade show, Mobile World Congress, in Barcelona, Spain, Samsung demonstrated prototype Tizen phones. Handsets running the OS are described as Android clones with the OS nearly identical to Samsung's Galaxy S5 Android OS.

Up until now, Samsung has been tight-lipped about any plans to put Tizen on handsets or tablets. Still, big questions remain when it comes to app support, partners said.

Tizen's success or failure will likely depend on a healthy app ecosystem, said partners. They said Samsung will need to aggressively court app developers.

Jeff Kagan, an independent technology analyst based in Marietta, Ga., said he was stunned by news that Samsung will bring its own smartphone operating system to the market.

"This is either going to be a raging success or a massive failure," he said. ’Samsung is the No. 1 Android OS provider. It’s really a big surprise when a No. 1 provider messes around with their recipe. It’s like Coca-Cola a few years ago messing around with their recipe.’

The news reminds Kagan of another mobile giant making a switch away from another brand of Google software. Upon the release of the IPhone 5, Apple had originally dumped the Google Maps app in favor of its own, but due to problems it had to tell customers to switch back to the software of its competitor, Google.

"Why are they doing this?" Kagan asked. "They must have faith in their new OS."

PUBLISHED APRIL 16, 2014