Much of the chatter following HP's buyout of Palm has been focused on what the firm's new owner can do for its struggling smartphone presence.
It would now appear that Palm's smartphone business isn't HP's primary concern, but rather its widely regarded operating system webOS that fuelled the move.
Putting the web in webOS
Speaking during HP's quarterly earnings call, company CEO Mark Hurd suggested the PC giant has big plans for Palm's software.
"[The proposed deal] isn't precisely a smartphone play, as I've seen some people write," revealed Hurd.
"It is, for us, strategically broader. We expect to leverage webOS into a variety of form factors, including slates and web-connected printers."
Printers are a surprise target for many, with many commentators suggesting HP's first move will be to equip its forthcoming tablet code named 'Hurricane' - with webOS following power issues with Intel's Atom processor and Windows 7.
Such a move would, in turn, put Palm up against Apple in another market, with the Pre and Pixi both well behind iPhone in the smartphone race.
Print and prosper
Regardless, Hurd believes printers are the perfect fit for webOS, claiming Palm's software will be fully integrated into the HP family.
"It really has more to do with the intellectual property and the fact that when you look across the HP ecosystem of interconnected devices, it is a large family of devices and we think of printers, youve now got a whole series of web-connected printers, and as they connect to the web, [they] need an OS.
[source: DailyTech]
News
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
Related Articles
Top Stories
News
May 4th, 2024
PocketGamer.biz Podcast Week in Views E10 - Brawl Stars smashes 2023 revenue, Square Enix’s extraordinary losses, and Haaland signs for Clash of Clans
News
May 3rd, 2024
Week in Views - Apple back themselves bigstyle, Clash bags Haaland and dreams come true at King
News
May 3rd, 2024
Week in Views - Apple back themselves bigstyle, Clash bags Haaland and dreams come true at King
News
May 3rd, 2024
Mobile Movers: All the latest appointments and job moves from around the industry
Events
LA Games Conference 2024 | North America | May 6th |
Mobidictum Meetup Berlin May 2024 | Europe | May 7th |
Valencia Indie Summit 2024 | Europe | May 16th |
Mobidictum Meetup Tallinn May 2024 | Europe | May 21st |
Israel Mobile Summit 2024 | Middle East | Jun 6th |
WN Conference Istanbul 2024 | Jun 11th | |
DevGAMM Vilnius 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |
Develop: Brighton 2024 | Europe | Jul 9th |