{"id":567231,"date":"2023-03-24T15:34:57","date_gmt":"2023-03-24T12:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/"},"modified":"2023-03-24T15:34:57","modified_gmt":"2023-03-24T12:34:57","slug":"could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/","title":{"rendered":"#Could Europe develop its own mobile operating system?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_89 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6aeecbcf43887\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6aeecbcf43887\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#Why_do_we_need_a_European_mobile_OS\" >Why do we need a European mobile OS?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#Join_us_at_TNW_Conference_June_15_16_in_Amsterdam\" >Join us at TNW Conference June 15 &amp; 16 in Amsterdam<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#But%E2%80%A6_is_a_European_OS_even_possible\" >But\u2026 is a European OS even possible?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#Lets_talk_about_the_third_option\" >Let\u2019s talk about the third option\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#Time_to_pretend\" >Time to pretend<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#The_technical_tribulations\" >The technical tribulations\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#And_then_we_have_the_political_problems\" >And then we have the political problems<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/could-europe-develop-its-own-mobile-operating-system\/#But_is_there_any_need_for_a_European_mobile_OS\" >But is there any need for a European mobile OS?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-main-content\">\n                            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">we asked<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> if it was possible for Europe to have a dominant smartphone again. The answer was simple: no, not unless there\u2019s some sort of miracle.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The reason behind this is multifaceted, but the core point is that because Asia hosts the majority of the world\u2019s mobile manufacturing facilities, it\u2019s borderline impossible for European companies to create a good enough phone at a low enough price to succeed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But, here at TNW, we had another question: could Europe launch its own mobile operating system?<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_do_we_need_a_European_mobile_OS\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why do we need a European mobile OS?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On first inspection, it\u2019s an excellent idea. A European operating system could wrestle some of the power back from Silicon Valley behemoths iOS and Android. Also, it wouldn\u2019t require the use of factories or raw materials, as the software could be developed in the continent itself.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Then let\u2019s not forget that Europe has been at the forefront of digital privacy regulation, with initiatives like the <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/gdpr.eu\/what-is-gdpr\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GDPR<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/92c1c848-6e95-44e0-992f-9abcf68be7ba\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">strict data-scraping laws<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> enforcing citizens\u2019 rights against data-hungry US tech giants.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper channel-cta\">\n<div class=\"ica-text\">\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Join_us_at_TNW_Conference_June_15_16_in_Amsterdam\"><\/span>Join us at TNW Conference June 15 &amp; 16 in Amsterdam<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Get 20% off your ticket now! Limited time offer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A European mobile operating system, then, could be used to ensure privacy at the highest level for people and extend an element of control over the tech ecosystem. That latter point is particularly important, because not only do <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">App<\/a>le and Google have control over the apps that appear on their platforms, they also <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">take huge revenue cuts<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from publishers. That\u2019s a staggering amount of power and income \u2014 all of which the EU could make use of.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"But%E2%80%A6_is_a_European_OS_even_possible\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But\u2026 is a European OS even possible?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To find out, I got in touch with several experts. One of them was Jan Stryjak, an associate director at <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.counterpointresearch.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Counterpoint Research<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. He leads the analyst firm\u2019s research in Europe, and has over 13 years of experience in the telecommunications, <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a>, and tech industries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The first thing he told me was that there was no space on the market for a new European \u2014 or any other, for that matter \u2014\u00a0mobile operating system. \u201cTwo is enough,\u201d he says, referring to iOS and Android. There were attempts in the past to make Windows a third dominant mobile OS, but these failed. While <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Windows_Mobile\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Windows Mobile<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Symbian\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Symbian<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> had their days in the sun, Android and iOS edged both out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt doesn\u2019t work,\u201d Stryjak tells me about the possibility of another operating system joining Apple and Google\u2019s mobile operating systems. Well, there goes that dream.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When I pressed Stryjak further on the chances for such a thing, the only potential he saw was something for \u201cthe really niche tech population who care about privacy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Lets_talk_about_the_third_option\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s talk about the third option\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This topic of privacy is something I discussed with Wayne Huang, VP of Product Operations at <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.fairphone.com\/en\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fairphone<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. His company creates devices that aim to be sustainable and climate neutral, with the goal of making repairable devices that give power back to the consumer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of Fairphone\u2019s core customer segments is precisely the tech niche that cares about privacy. When I asked him how this option was expressed on their devices, Huang pointed me towards <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fairphone.com\/en\/2020\/04\/30\/keeping-your-data-safe-with-e-os\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fairphone\u2019s partnership with the \/e\/ Foundation<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, specifically its Linux-based \/e\/OS mobile operating system.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1395013 js-lazy\" alt=\"The innards of a Fairphone, which shows how easily repairable the components can be.\" width=\"1333\" height=\"805\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1333px) 100vw, 1333px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards.webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards.webp 1333w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-280x169.webp 280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-224x135.webp 224w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-447x270.webp 447w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-796x481.webp 796w\"\/><figcaption><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"#\" data-url=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.thenextweb.com%2Fecosystems%2F2023%2F03%2F24%2Fwill-there-be-a-european-mobile-operating-system%2F&amp;via=thenextweb&amp;related=thenextweb&amp;text=Check out this picture on: In 2020, \/e\/OS was chosen as an alternative operating system for the Fairphone 3.\" data-title=\"Share In 2020, \/e\/OS was chosen as an alternative operating system for the Fairphone 3. on Twitter\" data-width=\"685\" data-height=\"500\" class=\"post-image-share popitup\" title=\"Share In 2020, \/e\/OS was chosen as an alternative operating system for the Fairphone 3. on Twitter\"><i class=\"icon icon--inline icon--twitter--dark\"\/><\/a>In 2020, \/e\/OS was chosen as an alternative operating system for the Fairphone 3.<\/figcaption><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1395013\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards.webp\" alt=\"The innards of a Fairphone, which shows how easily repairable the components can be.\" width=\"1333\" height=\"805\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards.webp 1333w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-280x169.webp 280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-224x135.webp 224w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-447x270.webp 447w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/fairphone-ethical-smartphone-innards-796x481.webp 796w\"\/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Users of Fairphone are able to install the privacy-first \/e\/OS, which is an open-source operating system that doesn\u2019t track user data. Despite this, Android apps can still be used on the platform and \/e\/OS will warn you about any built-in trackers they provide.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Huang was unable to give me numbers on how many people use \/e\/OS on Fairphone devices. The closest figure I found came from Ga\u00ebl Duval, the creator of the system. In 2021, <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.androidcentral.com\/eos-review-privacy-focused-android-without-google\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">he claimed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> there are \u201cbetween 25,000 and 35,000 users of \/e\/OS\u201d in total.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For context, <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/topics\/870\/iphone\/#dossier-chapter1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">there are over a billion iOS users<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 and that doesn\u2019t include other Apple operating systems.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What we\u2019ve found, then, is a pretty hard ceiling for a privacy-focused mobile OS. Currently, this is a niche option for niche devices. Yes, it could potentially grow and attract a healthy number of users, but this approach is unlikely to challenge the dominance of Android and iOS.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instead, as Stryjak explained to me, at best, a new OS on mobile devices will likely be similar to Linux on desktop computers: something that attracts a devoted fanbase, but fails to make it into the mainstream.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ending things there though is boring. We need to run this thought experiment through to its logical conclusion and truly work out what would happen if Europe developed its own mobile operating system.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Time_to_pretend\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Time to pretend<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s say that several EU member states disregard the above. They think the experts are misguided: there <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> room for a third major mobile operating system and they should be the ones to make it. What happens then?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Well, one thing\u2019s for certain: it won\u2019t be plain sailing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019ve been on a number of calls with European Commissioners\u2026 where they\u2019ve brought up a Linux system and asked if they can create something like this,\u201d Huang tells TNW. \u201cThe challenge is that it\u2019s difficult to bring everyone together to work towards this goal.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s not forget that the EU consists of 27 individual nations, all with different cultures and agendas. Getting countries that are more sceptical about big government and censorship on board with a European operating system will be a hard sell.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes, one could argue that it\u2019d help promote the bloc\u2019s focus on digital privacy and holding tech giants to account, but it\u2019s <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2022\/5\/8\/23062666\/eu-start-enforcing-the-dma-digital-markets-act-spring-2023-big-tech-regulation\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not as if the EU is struggling to make an impact as it is<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But let\u2019s pretend that, somehow, the EU manages to get each nation to agree that a European mobile operating system is actually a fantastic idea. The topic leapfrogs the invasion of Ukraine, sustainability, gas prices, and inflation to become <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> pressing matter in the European parliament. What then?<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_technical_tribulations\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The technical tribulations\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stryjak from Counterpoint tells TNW that the first big problem a European mobile operating system would face is how it would isolate the continent from the rest of the planet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe world is getting bigger, but closer at the same time,\u201d he tells TNW. For almost every function in modern society, \u201cyou need to have interoperability within Europe and other markets.\u201d In other words, software needs to work with other software, or things come tumbling down.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1395012 js-lazy\" alt=\"This is the aforementioned Jan Stryjak from Counterpoint Research.\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research.jpeg 1280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-280x158.jpeg 280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-240x135.jpeg 240w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-480x270.jpeg 480w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-796x448.jpeg 796w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-1200x675.jpeg 1200w\"\/><figcaption><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"#\" data-url=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.thenextweb.com%2Fecosystems%2F2023%2F03%2F24%2Fwill-there-be-a-european-mobile-operating-system%2F&amp;via=thenextweb&amp;related=thenextweb&amp;text=Check out this picture on: Stryjak has worked in European telecoms for more than 15 years.\" data-title=\"Share Stryjak has worked in European telecoms for more than 15 years. on Twitter\" data-width=\"685\" data-height=\"500\" class=\"post-image-share popitup\" title=\"Share Stryjak has worked in European telecoms for more than 15 years. on Twitter\"><i class=\"icon icon--inline icon--twitter--dark\"\/><\/a>Stryjak has worked in European telecoms for more than 15 years.<\/figcaption><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1395012\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research.jpeg\" alt=\"This is the aforementioned Jan Stryjak from Counterpoint Research.\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research.jpeg 1280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-280x158.jpeg 280w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-240x135.jpeg 240w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-480x270.jpeg 480w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-796x448.jpeg 796w, https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Jan-Stryjak-from-Counterpoint-Research-1200x675.jpeg 1200w\"\/><\/noscript><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If a European mobile OS was created, it\u2019d require an unbelievable amount of work to make it function with existing apps and functionalities across the world.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s think of it this way: would you switch to a phone that didn\u2019t have a native Gmail app? Or Twitter? TikTok? Instagram? It would take an inordinate amount of time just for those companies to port over their software \u2014 and they\u2019re some of the best-resourced organisations in the world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Imagine how long it\u2019d take for smaller businesses to port over all the apps you may need for work or life. It\u2019d be an undertaking of galactic proportions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Achieving the \u201csame functionality of Samsung and Apple [phones] would take many iterations to get to,\u201d Stryjak continues. And honestly? People aren\u2019t willing to wait that long for software to get good. They want it to work and they want it to work now.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"And_then_we_have_the_political_problems\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And then we have the political problems<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Continuing on this thought experiment, let\u2019s say this magical European mobile OS manages to overcome these development hurdles, and gets every engineer and coder alive to focus on making their software and hardware work perfectly with this new system. What then?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIf there\u2019s a Europe-specific OS, can it operate in Russia or China?\u201d Stryjak asks. The focus of this system would likely be enforcing GDPR and digital privacy, so could it operate in places where those regulations aren\u2019t as stringent?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The answer, likely, is no.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You only need to look at <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/everphone.com\/en\/blog\/huawei-data-privacy\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the privacy uproar<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> around HarmonyOS and <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Huawei\u2019s tribulations with the US<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to get a feeling for how countries outside of Europe would react to a state-backed operating system. In short, badly.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If the EU somehow managed to get its member states to agree to create a mobile operating system, the likelihood is that it\u2019d end up under-supported, struggling for users, and banned in various countries across the world.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To put that another way, it\u2019d be pretty useless.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"But_is_there_any_need_for_a_European_mobile_OS\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But is there any need for a European mobile OS?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Circling back to the crux of the piece, the answer is similar to hardware: no, not really.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The EU has been one of the biggest drivers in the digital privacy push and, although it could do even more if it had control over its own OS, the reality is that it\u2019s already had a huge impact on technological privacy. As long as the bloc contains such a huge and affluent user base, it will continue to hold some sort of sway over Silicon Valley.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a dream world, a European mobile operating system could improve a lot of things, but in reality? Pointless.<\/span>\n                        <\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/will-there-be-a-european-mobile-operating-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recently, we asked if it was possible for Europe to have a dominant smartphone again. The answer was simple: no, not unless there\u2019s some sort of miracle. The reason behind this is multifaceted, but the core point is that because Asia hosts the majority of the world\u2019s mobile manufacturing facilities, it\u2019s borderline impossible for European&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":567232,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw-blurple?filter_last=1&fit=1280,640&url=https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2023\/03\/Untitled-design-8.jpg&signature=f7b0ad58054efbfdd2d6ccfccc9af17e","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-567231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=567231"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567231\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/567232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=567231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=567231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=567231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}