Google CEO Says 2009 A Good Year For Android

While Google still has a long way to go before it seriously begins to chip away at market share owned by Windows Mobile, Symbian S60 and OS X, there's no denying that Android has already made an unmistakable mark on the mobile industry. The newfangled mobile operating system was largely praised with the HTC-built G1 launched last year on T-Mobile, and if the company's CEO has anything to do with it, 2009 will be an even better year for the burgeoning software.



CEO Eric Schmidt was quoted as saying that "overall, it looks like Android is going to have a very strong year." Said statement was proudly made during Google's first-quarter investors' conference, and he also teased listeners by admitting that "new announcements of Android-related products and partnerships with mobile phone service providers and device makers will be 'quite significant' this year."



Unlike Apple's mobile OS X, which isn't likely to spread from the iPhone in the near future, Android is actually aiming at devices other than the cellphone. We've already heard that it could soon be seen on UMPCs, MIDs, and all manners of other handheld devices. Heck, an Android-based netbook isn't even beyond the realm of feasibility. Google would do itself a huge favor by enabling any system maker out there to use Android, and given its history, we figure it'll do just that. Windows XP nabbed a vast majority of the netbook OS market share in 2008 -- surely Google figures it can steal away a few percent in 2009-2010.