14 DAY TRIAL // This week, Nokia seems to be full of surprises. After launching its new cell phone models in Singapore, the Finish manufacturer has announced that it will be developing a browser based on Apple's Safari for its future generations of high-end cell phones.
The company will use the open-source components embedded in Safari in order to create a browser for its Series 60 user-interface, which itself runs on the Symbian OS.
Safari derives from the KJS and KHTML JavaScript and HTML engines developed for KDE's Konqueror browser, and renamed JavaScriptCore and WebCore in Safari. Let's not forget that these components have been the subject of the dispute between Apple and the open-source developers, following which the company adopted a more open-minded policy regarding the Safari project.
"Nokia is excited to enrich Series 60 with optimized mobile Web browsing. Open source software is an ideal basis for development since it enables Nokia to leverage and contribute to speedy software innovation and development. As a result, the entire Series 60 value chain, from manufacturers and operators to end-users, will benefit from the flexible architecture, full Web compliance and a truly enjoyable user experience," said Pertti Korhonen, Chief Technology Officer, Nokia. And, speaking about the partnership, he added "Open source development also enables close cooperation with the industry's best innovators, such as Apple. Both Apple and Nokia share a commitment to Internet standards and the use of a common code. The unified and compatible browser base will offer a very compelling choice for Web content developers."
It's quite obvious that Apple has something to gain following this deal (otherwise, Jobs' company probably wouldn't have gotten involved in it). This vote of confidence from Nokia has a great importance for the users, and the number of persons that will employ the Safari/Konqueror browser is likely to increase.
This could be described as a win-win situation. Nokia is developing its browser, Apple builds on its image, and the users are getting a high-quality product. It remains to be seen whether things are actually how they appear to be.