HTC plans next month to start selling in China a smartphone based on the Android operating system, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The new HTC phone is a version of the company’s Magic model, unveiled in February, that has been customized to incorporate software from China Mobile.
HTC introduced the first Android-based smartphone, the G1, last year and remains the only vendor shipping Google phones, although Samsung Electronics, Motorola and LG Electronics are among those that plan to introduce Android devices.
China Mobile is expected to call its Android-based 3G phones Ophones in reference to the Open Mobile System.
Separately, China Mobile has selected ST-Ericsson’s company in China, T3G, as a major technology partner. Under that agreement, ST-Ericsson, the 50/50 joint venture between Ericsson and STMicroelectronics, will develop a new low-cost platform to support customers on TD-SCDMA devices. ST-Ericsson also will support customers to develop high-end mobile phones based on existing and new platforms such as the T7210.
