Getting into the game
Samsung is the only big smartphone player lacking its own operating system, something it plans to change with the launch of Tizen
Most mobile-phone users have never heard of Tizen. Neither have car owners or anyone with a refrigerator.
The South Korean electronics giant is in a quiet push to make its Tizen operating system as familiar as Google's Android or Apple's iOS. Its ambition does not stop there. Samsung sees the software being used in the car, fridge and television, too.
The first developers' conference in Asia for Tizen wrapped up on Tuesday after two days, bringing together app developers and Tizen backers from Samsung, Intel and mobile operators.
Samsung did not announce a Tizen phone, but it made a pitch for developers to create apps for the mobile operating system that has yet to be seen in the market. It promised to give out US$4 million in cash to the creators of the best Tizen apps.
Samsung supplied about one-third of the smartphones sold worldwide in the third quarter, nearly all of them running on Google's Android. Its early bet on Google's free-of-charge operating system served Samsung well, and the company's rise to top smartphone seller also helped Android become the most used mobile platform in the world. According to Localytics, 63 per cent of all Android mobile devices in use are made by Samsung.