據(jù)Digitimes援引一家筆記本電腦廠商的匿名人士的話報(bào)導(dǎo)，Google可能正在與ARM Holdings plc (英國劍橋)談判，討論為一款基于ARM的芯片組對Android操作系統(tǒng)進(jìn)行標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化。
盡管Android應(yīng)該是Google與開放手持設(shè)備聯(lián)盟(Open Handset Alliance)開發(fā)的一種開源操作系統(tǒng)，但有報(bào)導(dǎo)稱，Google(美國加州)堅(jiān)持要求對于Android開發(fā)采取一種紀(jì)律性更強(qiáng)的方式，有些人說類似于微軟的方式，以避免非一致性。
據(jù)《商業(yè)周刊》報(bào)導(dǎo)，Google在與開發(fā)者簽署的合同中堅(jiān)持寫入避免非一致性條款。那些想早日得到未來版本Android的公司，現(xiàn)在其計(jì)劃必須獲得谷歌的批準(zhǔn)。目前有一種擔(dān)憂，即如果開發(fā)者想要開發(fā)某種可能與谷歌功能競爭的應(yīng)用，如搜索和地圖，則Google可能不會批準(zhǔn)或者拖延批準(zhǔn)這些申請。
Google曾說過，沒有計(jì)劃推出3.0版Android，即Honeycomb，因?yàn)樵创a尚未寫好。但與此同時，摩托羅拉和宏基正在推出采用了3.0版Android的產(chǎn)品。這令人擔(dān)憂其沒有一視同仁和市場影響力過強(qiáng)。
《商業(yè)周刊》援引匿名消息人士的話稱，受到這種更加嚴(yán)格的新做法影響的公司包括LG、三星、東芝和Facebook，而且不斷有人向美國司法部投訴。據(jù)《商業(yè)周刊》，公司高管表示，在推出不同版本Android操作系統(tǒng)方面，Google一直給予其它芯片廠商搶先優(yōu)勢。
如果Google企圖定義一種標(biāo)準(zhǔn)硬件平臺，同時限制軟件自由，那么可能損害英特爾。英特爾正在努力攜其處理器進(jìn)軍移動設(shè)備市場。
由于ARM是占主導(dǎo)地位的智能手機(jī)架構(gòu)，Android已經(jīng)大量運(yùn)行于ARM架構(gòu)處理器。但是，由于該操作系統(tǒng)、中間件和應(yīng)用堆疊應(yīng)該是開源的、基于一種經(jīng)過改造的Linux內(nèi)核與Java語言，所以理論上應(yīng)該適用于任何處理器，包括英特爾的Atom處理器。
本文授權(quán)編譯自EETimes，版權(quán)所有，謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載！
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參考原文：Report: Google may standardize Android on ARM,by Peter Clarke
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Report: Google may standardize Android on ARM
Peter Clarke
Google Inc. may be entering talks with ARM Holdings plc (Cambridge, England) about a standardization of Android operating system for an ARM-based chipset, according to a Digitimes report that references unnamed sources at notebook computer makers.
Although Android is supposedly an open-source operating-system developed by Google and the Open Handset Alliance, there are reports that Google (Mountain View, Calif.) is insisting on a more disciplined – and some would say Microsoft-like – approach to the Android development in an attempt to resist fragmentation.
According to a BusinessWeek report Google is insisting on non-fragmentation clauses in contracts with developers. Companies that want early access to forthcoming iterations of Android now have to get approval for plans from Google. And there is concern that where developers wish to develop applications that could compete with Google functions, such as search and mapping, that approval could be withheld or delayed.
Google has said there are no plans to release version 3.0 of Android, known as Honeycomb, because the source code is not ready. But at the same time Motorola and Acer are releasing devices that use it. This is prompting concerns over favoritism and undue market influence.
Companies affected by the new tighter regime include LG, Samsung, Toshiba and Facebook and there have been complaints to the U.S. Justice Department, BusinessWeek said citing an unnamed source. Similarly Google has been giving different chip makers a head start in bringing up different iterations of the Android OS the BusinessWeek article reported executives as saying.
If Google attempts to define a standard hardware platform as well a limiting software freedoms, the move could hurt Intel which is attempting to move into mobile device space with its processors.
Android already runs on ARM architecture processors in the vast majority of cases as ARM is the dominant smartphone architecture. However, as the operating system, middleware and applications stack is supposedly open-source and based on a modified Linux kernel and the Java language it is in theory applicable to any processor including the Atom processor of Intel Corp.
