Linux gets boost as LiPS and OMA come together

The Linux Phone Standards (LiPS) Forum and the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) got together on Tuesday to work on the standardisation of next generation mobile services.

The collaboration should pave the way for more interoperability between mobile Linux platforms.

LiPS develops specifications and standards for services and user applications on mobile Linux platforms and OMA develops open specifications for service interoperability independent of the software platform.

As a result of the cooperation, the LiPS 1.0 specification and future releases will include a range of APIs to foster deployment of value-added services and applications, including “enabler services” based on OMA specifications. These enabler services will focus on OMA Device Management, Data Synchronisation, Instant Messaging and Presence, MMS and browsing.

The move will be of benefit to the fragmented mobile Linux community, paving the way for enhanced interoperability among Linux-based phones and between phones and devices built on other software platforms.

“Increasingly, Linux-based platforms provide the foundation for current and next generation telephony terminals, and LiPS standardisation can bolster that trend, along with other platforms,” said Jari Alvinen, chairman of the OMA.