Samsung to merge own Bada OS with open-source Tizen

Korean handset manufacturer Samsung plans to merge its own smartphone operating system, Bada with Intel’s open source OS Tizen, as it looks to consolidate its position in the global smartphone market.

Tizen is an Intel-backed open source platform that was launched in September 2011 and supports smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, netbooks, and in-vehicle infotainment devices. The Tizen application programming interfaces are based on HTML5 and other web standards, and the first release of Tizen and its software developer kit (SDK) is expected to be launched in the first quarter of 2012.

Samsung recently told Informa Telecoms and Media that it plans to expand the variety of handsets and tablets that run on Bada, by making the operating system open source in 2012. The move will lessen its reliance on Google’s Android operating system, which, despite propelling it into a market-leading position, has seen it become entangled in a plethora of lawsuits over patent infringement with Apple and Microsoft, and the firm is also having to pay royalties to Microsoft for every Android smartphone and tablet it ships.

Reports suggest that Bada will be used in lower-end smartphones, while higher-end devices will run on the Tizen/Bada-merged platform.

Samsung launched the Bada operating system in 2009, and the platform is used on a range of Samsung handsets across Europe and developing markets.