Google may launch its "small-scale" wireless service as early as this month but in the beginning it will only work on the Internet giant's own Nexus 6 smartphone, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Citing unnamed sources, the Journal reported Friday that Google could be launching the service "by the end of March." That's unofficial , of course, but earlier this week, Sundar Pichai, Google's SVP of Android, Chrome, and Google Apps, confirmed that the company is exploring the option of offering a wireless service.
"I think we're at the stage where we need to think of hardware, software, and connectivity together," Pichai said during a keynote at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Google's service, first rumored as a possibility back in January, would connect phones to Wi-Fi and cellular networks. The catch, according to the WSJ, is that it "will initially be available only on the latest Nexus 6 smartphone designed by Google and made by Motorola Mobility."
Sources told the paper that the service wouldn't initially work on older Nexus phones, including the Nexus 5 made by LG Electronics.
The WSJ said Google's wireless service "will weave together the cellular networks of T-Mobile and Sprint and available Wi-Fi networks, picking the best at any moment and location to improve the overall quality of calling and Internet access."
To pull this off, Google is reportedly relying on Motorola's expertise at building devices which can switch between networks, as well as capabilities in Android Lollipop to pick and switch connectivity options to run specific apps well.
Chloe Albanesius contributed to this story.