Google challenge to iPhone just weeks away

By James Quinn
Last Updated: 10:29am GMT 31/10/2007

Internet search engine Google is set to follow Apple in to the lucrative mobile phone market.

Google is reported to be just weeks away from launching its own handset, detailing a blueprint which would lead to a launch at some point in mid-2008.

The search engine giant is believed to want to create its own mobile phone to harness all its various applications.
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So, in the same way that users of Apple's iPhone can use it as an iPod or as a junior iMac, so Google phone users would be able to use a number of its applications such as Google Earth and YouTube while on the move.

Part of the excitement surrounds the fact that Google wants to keep its software open, allowing external software developers to build and add-on additional features.

While Google itself declines to comment, market chatter surrounding the Google phone has now become so intense that the majority of commentators agree that some form of work has to be going on.

However, France Telecom, which had been linked as a potential handset provider for the Google phone, yesterday formally denied it was in talks with the search engine provider.

The other firm which has been linked as Google's US telecoms partner for the venture is T-Mobile, owned by Deutsche Telekom.

In the US, Apple has teamed up with AT&T to provide the iPhone while in the UK it will hook up with O2 for network services.

Detractors from the Google phone theory suggest the company may merely be working on operating software that can then be used by phone companies.

In any case, Google's shares traded up $18.37 at $697.60 on the heightened speculation in addition to recent strong third-quarter results. The company is now valued at $212bn. (£102.5bn).