There's no doubt that HP's purchase of Palm was primarily driven by a desire to get hold of webOS – the firm's acclaimed smartphone platform.

Since then, HP has been open about its intentions to spread webOS's base far and wide, first printers and later tablets – in the form of the forthcoming TouchPad – the first to benefit from the platform.

Now PC's are also set to gain, with CEO Leo Apotheker telling BusinessWeek that the firm is looking to ship webOS on every PC it manufacturers in 2012.

Opening windows with webOS

Rather than replace Windows 7, instead the platform will be integrated alongside Microsoft's OS, giving – in HP's view – the firm's PCs the edge over those offered by its rivals.

However, the move is also being used to tempt developers to work on the platform. According to the latest studies, App Catalogue for webOS has less apps than almost all of its rivals – including Windows Phone Marketplace, which only launched in October.

If HP wants TouchPad to compete in the tablet space, it will need to secure as much software support for webOS as it can.

Shipping the platform on its PCs almost by stealth, therefore, is a logical way of expanding its consumer base in a stroke, in turn making webOS a far more appealing prospect for app developers.

[source: BusinessWeek]