The troubled Symbian OS platform has received a shot in the arm with the endorsement of a EUR22 million research project which it says identifies it as “a unique technology that is a vital focus for European-centric mobile software development.” The SYMBEOSE project – a name apparently derived from Symbian, the Embedded Operating System for Europe – has been endorsed by the EU’s Artemis Joint Technology Initiative, which will provide around half of the necessary funding. In addition to exploring technology enhancements to the core Symbian OS, the work will also explore the potential for the platform in other hardware forms beyond the smartphone. The project is backed by 24 organisations from eight European countries, although only two companies come from the hardware category – Nokia and ST-Ericsson – with the bulk of the representation from software companies and commercial and academic R&D bodies. In an earlier presentation related to the project, the Symbian Foundation said that its efforts can “combat mobile device and service homogeneity exemplified by Android and iOS,” noting that 20,000 jobs around Europe are estimated to depend on its platform. The aims of the project were described as “optimistic but realistic,” and it was said that the Symbian technology management team is “fully engaged” with the project.

The efforts have been divided into smaller projects, each with its own work stream and objectives, and members of the consortium have committed to deliver these projects and provide the balance of the required funding. According to a blog on the Symbian Foundation website, “the proposed advances to the Symbian platform will focus on radically improving the basis for new device creation on Symbian. Additional work will concentrate on a set of core platform enablers that will support the types of mobile services that will be most prevalent in the near future.” It was noted that “new opportunities will arise from the principle that all mobile, Internet-connected devices share a number of common requirements on their underlying software system,” and that Symbian OS is “in a strong position to benefit in this emerging world of embedded devices by supporting new types of hardware.” Among the areas of focus identified are new core platform capabilities, such as asymmetrical multiprocessing, and understanding how the growth of cloud computing will impact mobile device development.