According to the Observer of London Google, in its continuing efforts to completety take over the world as far as being the middle man between information and people who want it, has held talks with Taiwanese handset manufacturer HTC and mobile telecom giant Orange about a multi-billion dollar partnership to create a ‘Google phone‘, or, GoogleBerry, as I like to call it.

Their plans centre on a branded Google phone, which would probably also carry Orange’s logo. The device would not be revolutionary: manufactured by HTC, a Taiwanese firm specialising in smart phones and Personal Data Assistants (PDAs), it might have a screen similar to a video iPod. But it would have built-in Google software which would dramatically improve on the slow and cumbersome experience of surfing the web from a mobile handset.


GigaOm has an interesting take on the GoogleBerry that could possibly go on sale in 2008.

Google Phone, if you think about it is a reasonable speculation. Google has been aggressive in developing location based services, has amp-ed up its local search and mapping services. In addition, it has also been mobilizing its applications such as GTalk and GMail. YouTube, the video arm of Google, is beginning to embrace the mobile ecosystem.

Normally, one would not spend too much energy on this bit of news. However, presence of Andy Rubin on Google campus gives us a reason to pause.

Who is Rubin? He was one of the co-founders of Danger, the company that makes the Sidekick devices. He sold his last company, Android to Google for an undisclosed amount of money, and he has been holed up in Mountain View, California campus of Google, doing something.

No one knows what, but since Android was focusing on mobile, it is safe to assume that he just might be involved in Android. Danger, as you might know has become a multimillion dollar business based off the “compress web and take it mobile” technology developed by Rubin and others. Businessweek had reported that Android was working on a cell phone operating system.

Google might be coming out with a phone. Apple is coming out with a phone. RIM is trying to become a player outside of the corporate world. The consumer market for smartphones is starting to heat up and it will be interesting to see how things develop over the coming year.

GoogleBerry, Google Phone