Google Inc's Android operating system is gaining support in the mobile industry, with 8 million Android phones to be sold in 2009, up 10-fold from a year ago, research firm Strategy Analytics said on Monday. With the overall handset market shrinking as economies slow globally, the mobile industry is focusing investment on more advanced smartphones and their software. Google's Android was introduced in the United States in the second half of 2008, and now all top cellphone vendors except Nokia have said they would use Android. "Android is now in a good position to become a top-tier player in smartphones over the next two to three years," said Neil Mawston, a director at Strategy Analytics. Mawston said handset vendors and operators like T-Mobile and Vodafone are attracted to Android's relatively low-cost licensing model, its semi-open-source structure and Google's support for services. Despite the 10-fold growth forecast for 2009, with 8 million phones sold A...
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