HTC considers acquiring a mobile OS

Most of the mobile OS acquisition talk in the last two months has been about Samsung, whose misgivings about the Google-Motorola deal were thought to be sparking interest in an alternative to Android. An alternative besides its own Bada OS, which seemed somewhat unlikely. With Samsung flat out denying that it had any interest in acquiring an OS, the spotlight is now on HTC.

Chairwoman Cher Wang has told reporters in China that the company had “given thought” to buying a mobile OS. That would line HTC up with the likes of RIM, Samsung, and now the Motorola Mobility/Google tandem.

Which OSes was HTC considering? It’s safe to assume that HP’s webOS was most talked about, but Meego and Symbian could have been options as well. All three have been part of a swirling maelstrom of mobile uncertainty this year.

But HTC is in no hurry to drop a ton of cash on an operating system. They did, after all, just shell out big bucks for a controlling stake in Dr. Dre’s Beats Electronics to secure exclusive access to Beats Audio tech for their phones and tablets, and Wang feels that HTC’s strength currently lies in “understanding an OS.” She likely means the OSes they already ship: Android and Windows Phone.

Wang states that HTC has the ability to differentiate on a “second or third layer,” meaning via software like HTC Sense and tech integration like Beats.

More at Focus Taiwan and TNW