Google set to launch its own mobile phone next year

Google has designed virtually the entire software experience behind the phone,from the applications that run on it to the look and feel of each screen. The direct sales move by Google could alienate wireless carriers and handset makers that offer Android phones and do not want to compete with Google,the Wall Street Journal said,adding that Google has repeatedly said that its goal is to have hundreds of Android phones rather than one.

It marks a departure for the leader in web advertising,which has rarely sold devices directly to consumers,the newspaper said.

Google became a high-profile player in mobile two years ago,when it launched Android software. A number of leading handset manufacturers,including Motorola Inc.,built phones running the software,some of which contain branding “powered by Google.” But the phones — many of which hit the market in recent months —haven’t sold nearly as well as Apple’s iPhone.

Analysts say the aim is to gain access to valuable consumer data that can be used to sell ads at premium prices,rather than to make money from direct hardware sales,as companies such as Nokia or Research in Motion do.

Research house IDC estimates the market share for Android operating software rose to 5.4 per cent from 4.2 per cent in July-September in Western Europe,a key market.

Executives at HTC,the Taiwan-based world’s No 4 smartphone brand,were not available for comment. Google was also not available for comment. Google began sharing a version of the Nexus One with employees in recent days,the newspaper cited its sources as saying.