In a move that could potentially bring Linux to the masses, eight of the world"s top consumer electronics vendors have formed an alliance to promote development of the open-source operating system (OS) for use in digital devices including audio and visual equipment and mobile phones.
Sony, Royal Philips Electronics and Matsushita, which makes the Panasonic brand, are among the founding members of the CE Linux Forum (CELF), which was announced Tuesday. Its goals include defining the technical requirements that will make Linux more suitable for consumer devices and promoting wider use of the OS in the consumer electronics industry, according to a joint statement.
The CELF will publish its list of requirements and take submissions from Linux developers who contribute to their goals. Work to be done includes reducing the time it takes to start up and shut down the OS, improving its real-time capabilities, reducing memory requirements and improving power management capabilities, the group said. The move appears as something of a blow to Microsoft, which has been promoting the use of its own software in DVD players, televisions and other electronics gear. Bill Gates, the company"s chairman and chief software architect, has been the opening speaker at the giant Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas for the past several years.