The one thing that links all prospective suitors for HP's webOS is none of them plan to operate the platform in its current form.

Samsung's rumoured buyout, later denied, suggested webOS would act as a side quest to a wider buyout of HP's PC business, while commentators believed HTC could mold the platform into its own, re-branded OS.

Amazon, meanwhile, is apparently looking to strip webOS for parts, applying the best bits to the heavily modified version of Android running on Kindle Fire.

Kindle surprise

That's according to VentureBeat, which states a "well placed source" has revealed Amazon is the closest amongst a "handful of contenders" to finalise a deal for the platform.

As well as taking charge of webOS, any acquisition would be for Palm as a whole, with the online retailer taking charge of the business HP purchased for $1.2 billion in 2010.

"Given just how badly the TouchPad failed, HP will likely offer what’s left of Palm at a major discount, especially since Amazon woudn't be interested in resuscitating now extinct webOS hardware," claims VentureBeat's Devindra Hardawar in the report.

There's little concrete evidence for the story aside from the site's unnamed source, though webOS's strengths in multi-tasking as gesture controls are well documented. Employing them in Kindle Fire would give the tablet some additional USPs, outside of its cut-down price.

Either way, any acquisition by Amazon would bring little cheer for existing TouchPad or Palm Pre owners, both devices resigned to the recycling bin should the firm merge Palm's tech into its own line-up.

[source: VentureBeat]