The Alliance: Google's Android Gambit

There is an announcement that happened this week, and the announcement is the alliance: the Open Handset Alliance that Google unveiled on Monday, the consortium of thirty four companies, the open source operating system that runs on Linux. The announcement is the Monday story: the names that were listed, the platform that was described, the phones that are promised for next year. The alliance is the countermove to the iPhone. The alliance is the November 2007 story, and the story is the lesson: the platform that is given away, the coalition that is assembled, the search that is the prize.

The Alliance is the subject of this article: what Google announced, who joined, and what the free platform means for mobile.

1. The Announcement on Monday

The announcement is the event, and the event is Monday: the press conference Google held on November 5, the Open Handset Alliance that was revealed, the thirty four companies that stood with Google, the Android platform that was introduced to the world. The announcement is the surprise: the software that had been rumored for years, the operating system that Google built quietly, the partners that were already signed, the phones that are promised for 2008. The announcement is the Monday meaning: the search company that moved into mobile, the free platform offered to every manufacturer, the industry that was asked to join.

The announcement is also the timing, and the timing is the moment: the iPhone that went on sale in June, the Apple device that redefined the phone, the months of speculation about Google's answer, the alliance that arrived on the first Monday of November. The announcement is the November meaning: the search company that had grown rich on advertising, that had watched Apple seize the phone, that now declared mobile its next battlefield. The announcement is the context: the year of the iPhone, the year of the mobile internet, the year that ended with Google's biggest strategic move outside search.

2. The Thirty Four Companies

The alliance is the coalition, and the coalition is the list: the thirty four companies that were named on Monday, the manufacturers, carriers, and chipmakers that signed on together. The list is the HTC, the Samsung, the Motorola, the LG; the T Mobile among the carriers; the Qualcomm, the Intel, the Texas Instruments among the silicon; the Google at the center. The alliance is the structure: the horizontal coalition that spans the phone business, the partners that compete in the stores, the rivals that agreed to share one platform. The thirty four is the number, and the number is the point.

The coalition is also the strategy, and the strategy is the spread: the Google that could not build phones alone, that could not persuade the carriers alone, that chose the consortium over the conquest. The alliance is the inclusion: the manufacturers that keep their brands, the carriers that keep their networks, the chipmakers that keep their silicon, the software that belongs to everyone. The alliance is the Monday message: the open platform no company controls, the Google that leads without owning, the coalition that is stronger than the company. The thirty four are the bet, and the bet is the breadth.

3. The Open Source Bet

The platform is the software, and the software is the gift: the Android operating system that Google described on Monday, the stack that runs on Linux, the code that will be open source, the license that any manufacturer can take. The platform is the economics: the operating system that costs nothing, the licensing fees that disappear, the Windows Mobile that charges, the Symbian that charges, the closed iPhone that charges in its own way. The platform is the Android meaning: the free operating system that changes the cost of every phone, the software that manufacturers can modify, the stack that carriers can shape.

The open source is also the argument, and the argument is the future: the mobile internet that is the next platform, the phones that will outnumber the computers, the search that will follow the user everywhere. The open source is the Google logic: the software that is given away, the search that is sold, the maps that are free, the platform that is open, the gate that stays open. The open source is the November bet: the operating system that anyone can take, the advertising that pays for everything. The gift is the strategy, and the strategy is the search.

4. The Closed Rivals

The rivals are the contrast, and the contrast is the closed: the Apple iPhone that keeps its software to itself, the Microsoft Windows Mobile that sells licenses, the Symbian that dominates the old market, the RIM that guards its BlackBerry. The rivals are the old economics: the operating systems that are sold, the platforms that are controlled, the developers that pay, the manufacturers that comply. The rivals are the Monday backdrop: the closed iPhone that every story compared to Android, the licensing model that Android attacks, the incumbents that were named in every note, the field that Google chose to enter.

The closed is also the warning, and the warning is the lesson: the Apple that controls the device, the Microsoft that controls the desktop, the lesson that control is the old way. The closed is the fear: the iPhone that could own the mobile internet, the single company that could decide the rules, the gatekeeper that could charge the toll. The closed is the Google argument: the open Android against the closed iPhone, the free platform against the paid license, the consortium against the single company, the many against the one. The rivals are the reason, and the reason is the openness.

5. The iPhone Frame

The frame is the comparison, and the comparison is the iPhone: the device that went on sale in June, the Apple phone that every Android story began with, the touchscreen that set the standard, the closed system that Google answered. The frame is the coverage: the headlines that paired the two, the analysts who scored the contest, the carriers that watched, the manufacturers that hesitated. The frame is the Monday reality: the iPhone that was the year's story, the Android that was the year's answer, the two platforms that the industry will choose between, the contest declared on the first Monday of November.

The comparison is also the caution, and the caution is the wait: the carriers that are cautious, the manufacturers that are cautious, the phones that are promised for 2008, the market that will decide. The comparison is the distance: the iPhone that exists today, the Android that exists as code, the gap between the announcement and the device. The comparison is the November lesson: the story that every analyst wrote, the frame that no one escaped, the question that defines the year ahead, the answer that is not yet written. The iPhone is the frame, and the frame is the test.

6. The Search Business

The search is the purpose, and the purpose is the prize: the Google that lives on advertising, that sells the search box, that places the ads, that needs the mobile internet to stay its home. The search is the Google goal: the search on every phone, the maps on every phone, the ads on every phone, the revenue that follows the user into the pocket. The search is the business: the mobile internet that is the next platform, the platform that Google must not lose, the traffic that will move to the phones, the advertising that will move with it.

The purpose is also the pattern, and the pattern is the platform: the operating system that is given away, the search that is sold, the maps that are free, the ads that pay. The purpose is the Google model: the free product that builds the audience, the audience that builds the data, the data that builds the fortune. The purpose is the Monday logic: the Android that carries Google into the pocket, the open platform that puts the search box on every screen, the mobile internet that is the next platform, and the next platform that is the next fortune.

7. The Carrier Question

The carriers are the gatekeepers, and the gatekeepers are the question: the T Mobile that joined the alliance, the other carriers that watched, the networks that control the phones, the operators that decide what sells. The carriers are the caution: the cautious reactions the analysts reported, the operators that did not sign, the questions about the business model, the doubts about the free operating system. The carriers are the Monday puzzle: the alliance that needs the carriers, the carriers that need the phones, the phones that need the networks, the circle that the alliance must close, and the circle that decides the year.

The question is also the power, and the power is the shift: the carriers that controlled the phone business, the software that now comes free, the balance that moves toward the platform. The question is the economics: the carriers that sold the ringtones and the wallpapers, the internet that bypasses the old tolls, the mobile web that threatens the old revenue, the operators that must decide where they stand. The question is the Monday meaning: the T Mobile inside, the others outside, the door that is open, the carriers that will walk through it in their own time, the negotiation that has begun.

8. The Lesson for the Industry

The lesson is the structure, and the structure is the coalition: the horizontal alliance of manufacturers, carriers, and chipmakers against the vertical empire of one company. The lesson is the economics: the operating system that is free, the licenses that are gone, the cost of the phone that falls, the software that becomes the battleground. The lesson is the Monday meaning: the industry that is asked to choose between the open and the closed, the platform that is offered to everyone, the coalition that is Google's answer to Apple's single device. The alliance is the lesson, and the lesson is the form.

The lesson is also the open question, and the open question is the year ahead: the phones that are promised for 2008, the carriers that are cautious, the manufacturers that are watching, the contest that is not yet decided. The lesson is the analyst view: the biggest strategic move outside search, the bet that the mobile internet is the next platform, the judgment the industry will render. The Alliance is the November 2007 story, and the story is the lesson: the software that is free, the coalition that is broad, the search that is the prize, the year ahead will tell.

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