Rumor has it that Samsung is planning to buy Nokia's MeeGo operating system, a week after Intel reportedly said it would back off development of the platform.
Citing anonymous sources, German blog NetbookNews reported that Samsung was looking to buy the Linux-based, open source OS, which Nokia and Intel co-launched in February 2010.
Adding fire to the rumor, last Friday DigiTimes re-ignited old speculation about Intel ceasing development for MeeGo, due to a lack of consumer interest. That comes several months after Nokia said it would abandon MeeGo in favor of Microsoft's Windows Phone 7. Nokia launched the MeeGo-based N9 in June, but CEO Stephen Elop said it will be Nokia's last MeeGo-based device. Nokia is expected to launch its first Windows Phone 7 device, codenamed Sea Ray, by year's end.
So why would Samsung want it? In August, Google raised eyebrows when it announced the acquisition of Motorola Mobility. It is unclear whether or not the acquisition was purely for patent play, but the news might have left a sour taste in the mouths of other Android partners, like Samsung, despite reports that they "welcomed" the news.
Slashgear notes that last month, Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee warned executives that "IT power" was shifting from hardware companies to software ones; however last week, Samsung said it would "never" buy HP's webOS platform. Furthermore, Samsung has invested a lot in Android mobile devices and in its year-old, proprietary "bada" operating system, a rather niche product seen in the Samsung Wave.