Samsung spokesman James Chung in a statement Friday ruled out the prospects of buying MeeGo. The representative didn’t acknowledge that Samsung might just take control, but he argued that a financial deal was impossible. As open-source work, it “cannot be a target of acquisition,” he told CNET.
Intel system software GM Doug Fisher, meanwhile, claimed on Thursday that there wouldn’t be a transition to another company. His firm would still work on the mobile OS and was just looking for a replacement for Nokia.
“It’s just a question of who is going to help us shape [MeeGo],” he said. He wouldn’t say if Samsung was that partner.
A flurry of rumors have surrounded MeeGo’s fate, including the possibility that Intel would put a halt to it out of lack of interest. Intel co-developed MeeGo with Nokia with the aims of having an OS it could use for everything from smartphones through to netbooks that would reduce its dependency on any one outside company, like Apple or Microsoft, for success. Repeated delays, Intel’s own problems making a mobile chip, and Nokia’s preference for Windows Phone all cut MeeGo short.
Samsung has often liked having its own platform and built Bada so it could have a unique platform. With large strides in smartphone share coming from Android and Windows Phone as a third platform, though, many have speculated that Samsung would be unlikely to want a fourth choice.
The company has still been the subject of other takeover rumors, such as a deal for webOS or buying HP’s PC business.
