Announcement on Google phone imminent

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According to the Wall Street Journal, Google will make a series of announcements over the next couple of weeks, about mobile-phone software which combines Google applications on a mobile platform.

Google phone, which is an operating system rather than an actual phone, would run on several different models of phone, and could be available for free.

It will provide Google applications such as search, maps, YouTube and instant-messaging, and will also be open to third party developers to create applications for it.

Google is aiming to make applications and services as accessible on cellphones as they are on the Internet.

This represents a fundamental change of philosophy for US cellular carriers, who are more restrictive in allowing applications to run on their phones.

US carriers tend to control the distribution of phones to their customers, through their own retail outlets.

Most of them forbid the addition of third-party software, and may even disable Wi-Fi networking capabilities, forcing users to access the internet via their expensive data plans.

There is speculation that the Google phone will have few, or even no restrictions, and will support GPS, Wi-Fi, 3G and a still and video camera.

T-Mobile is tipped to be Google’s preferred carrier-partner in the venture, and Google is believed to have approached handset manufactures, including HTC Corp and LG Electronics, about building phones tailored to the software.