FACTBOX: Mobile software market increasingly crowded

HELSINKI (Reuters) - The number of mobile phone operating systems is on the rise, with Samsung Electronics starting to open its own software platform bada to outside developers.

While Samsung, Apple, BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion and Palm develop their own operating systems, the following systems battle for handset makers and consumers in the open market:

SYMBIAN

Nokia's workhorse Symbian controls around half of the mobile operating system market, but has lost much ground over the last two years to Apple and RIM.

The Symbian Foundation, which inherited intellectual property from Nokia and other former shareholders of UK-based smartphone maker Symbian, distributes the software royalty-free.

Symbian is also the key platform for No. 4 phone maker Sony Ericsson, which uses also Windows and Android as complementary offerings.

ANDROID

Google's Open Handset Alliance of companies supporting its Android mobile phone software includes Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC, Germany's T-Mobile and Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker.

Android has won attention in the mobile industry lately, with Motorola and Sony Ericsson choosing it for their new top models.

WINDOWS MOBILE

Microsoft has tried to conquer the mobile market for years but without any success. Its Windows mobile operating system used to be the second most popular for smartphones after Symbian, but has been overtaken by Apple and Research in Motion.

All top vendors except Nokia support Windows Mobile, but HTC is the world's largest maker of phones using Windows. While Samsung, Motorola and Sony Ericsson have Windows phones on the market, they make up only a small proportion of their offerings.

In February 2009 Microsoft signed a deal with LG Electronics, under which the world's third-largest cellphone maker will use Windows software in most of its smartphones.

LIMO

Linux consortium LiMo hopes to benefit from its focus on giving greater say over software development to telecoms operators.

LiMo Foundation was set up in 2007 by Vodafone, Samsung, NTT DoCoMo, France Telecom's Orange, Panasonic Corp, and NEC Corp. (Reporting by Tarmo Virki; Editing by Sharon Lindores)