Hon Hai, Mozilla to launch mobile device running on Firefox

Published May 28, 2013
Mozilla's Chief Executive Officer Gary Kovacs presents the new Firefox OS mobile operating system in Barcelona on February 24, 2013. — AFP File Photo
Mozilla's Chief Executive Officer Gary Kovacs presents the new Firefox OS mobile operating system in Barcelona on February 24, 2013. — AFP File Photo

Reuters - Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd will team up with Mozilla and launch a mobile device that runs on the US company's Firefox operating system, a Mozilla spokeswoman said, as Hon Hai looks to diversify its client base away from Apple.

The Taipei-based Mozilla spokeswoman declined to provide details on the device that the companies plan to unveil on June 3, but Focus Taiwan, citing an "industry insider", reported that it would likely be a tablet.

Hon Hai and Mozilla declined to comment on the report.

Hon Hai, a contract electronics maker that draws an estimated 60 percent of its revenue from assembling gadgets and other work for Apple Inc, saw its net profit ease last quarter as sales of iPhones and iPads slowed.

Most of the mobile devices that Hon Hai manufactures run on Apple's iOS and Google's Android systems. Hon Hai said it would add Firefox to its product line for clients.

Mozilla, the non-profit organization that evolved from Netscape, said at Barcelona's Mobile World Congress in February that it was working with manufacturers Alcatel (TCL Communication Technology), LG Electronics and ZTE Corp to build the first Firefox OS devices, with Huawei Technologies to follow later in the year, all powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile processors.

Opinion

A state of chaos

A state of chaos

The establishment’s increasingly intrusive role has further diminished the credibility of the political dispensation.

Editorial

Bulldozed bill
Updated 22 May, 2024

Bulldozed bill

Where once the party was championing the people and their voices, it is now devising new means to silence them.
Out of the abyss
22 May, 2024

Out of the abyss

ENFORCED disappearances remain a persistent blight on fundamental human rights in the country. Recent exchanges...
Holding Israel accountable
22 May, 2024

Holding Israel accountable

ALTHOUGH the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor wants arrest warrants to be issued for Israel’s prime...
Iranian tragedy
Updated 21 May, 2024

Iranian tragedy

Due to Iran’s regional and geopolitical influence, the world will be watching the power transition carefully.
Circular debt woes
21 May, 2024

Circular debt woes

THE alleged corruption and ineptitude of the country’s power bureaucracy is proving very costly. New official data...
Reproductive health
21 May, 2024

Reproductive health

IT is naïve to imagine that reproductive healthcare counts in Pakistan, where women from low-income groups and ...