I'm just curious, so don't take this comment to mean or imply anything. What does "commitment" to a mobile OS from a operator actually mean? What do, in this case, Mozilla get from it?

As someone outside of the mobile phone industry (Just a simple consumer) I don't see the advantage of having a mobile phone service provider "committing" to your OS. Surely hardware manufacturers are vastly more important as they are the people who are actually going to create devices that can run your OS?

I'm pretty excited about the possibility of Firefox OS gaining significant traction. If it were up to me Mozilla would be in just about every market online. They are great at keeping people honest. Between this and Identify Mozilla is coming back!

Here's a video if anyone wants to see what one of these devices actually looks like: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/zte-open-hands-on/

I'm torn. On one hand, I really want Firefox to succeed. On the other, the blood of mobile operators is as dark and thick as tar. Can this end well?

In list form:

* América Móvil

* China Unicom

* Deutsche Telekom

* Etisalat

* Hutchison Three Group

* KDDI

* KT

* MegaFon

* Qtel

* SingTel

* Smart

* Sprint

* Telecom Italia Group

* Telefónica

* Telenor

* TMN

* VimpelCom

This is frakking awesome. This means that a considerable part of the world will get access to Firefox OS and afforable phones.

I hope they don't do an Android I.e 18 fragmented broken rarely upgraded OS's with horrible carrier customisation.

This is the area that Microsoft with WinPhone 7+ and Apple with iOS have got right.

Maybe someone here will know - is Firefox OS going to be customized by manufacturers like Android, or the same everywhere like Windows? I know it's open source so manufacturers could do whatever they want, but maybe there's some agreement I don't know about which will make them keep the standard ui. Anybody know?

Has/will Ubuntu Mobile, Tizen or any of the other minor players announced anything similar?

I feel the coming irony of the days when FirefoxOS will perform better and be faster than Ubuntu phones.

(It's already true, but since Ubuntu phones aren't there yet, the comparison is unfair.)

Totally irrelevant until operators actually start selling and subsidizing the devices. Operators will support all OS's, it's in their interest to make sure there is competition at the device and OS level. True commitment comes when they start putting marketing dollars behind the real products.

I love watching how incentives drive so many things I see around me.

Looks like the operators have just realised that Android is commoditizing their services and turning them into just dumb substitutable commodity data providers.

Stupid care about Sticker. Great men never care about what they use !.

Suppose Every great men can be seen with their Apple product. They will tell you how they bought it. Simply they see that it's better then compare to Windows. Simple !. Apple sell without Manual.

For example a men look for a Mobile. They will see one and check the spec and finally bought it. Sometime (only few for me) OS matter when the apps they want is available to few platform OS.

Suppose I use a Mobile and I need 10 apps and all of them available in Firefox then their is no need to go with Android. IF Firefox make me happy then I will give it a try (example not serious).

When Someone really Like Windows 8 phone and they want to bought it. OS never matter (even they are MSFT hatters).

I maybe confused with this writing myself but it's quite clear then people will gave it try if they have no actual need or their few requirement can be done on the phone they want to buy.

How many phone OS do we need? I think the reason we have so many is the same reason we have so many different power connectors and screw heads. Because too many A$$hats are alive.

Suck it, Google. This is what you get for being control freaks and abusing all the other players. You cant own everything. You are going to lose the billing, application distribution and DRM battle for sure now. Your burgeoning YouTube-based media empire cum ChromeOS/DRM wet dream is destined for failure. Wake up and smell the roses. You are evil. We hate you.