Verizon Wireless wants to cut down the number of mobile phone operating systems

Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ) wants to cut down the number of mobile phone operating systems it needs to support in the next few years to speed up the time it takes to bring new applications to consumers, reports Reuters. Speaking at CTIA, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam, said that the carrier currently supports eight or nine operating systems, and wants to bring that number down to three or four. Other carriers, including co-owner Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) and rival AT&T (NYSE: T) have made similar complaints about the proliferation of platforms. The AP reports, however, that though Verizon is a member of the LiMo Foundation, it won't be giving special weight to its version of Linux. That's despite last year's pledge from the carrier that LiMo's Linux would be the preferred platform. McAdam said, "We want to see what works well over time." No word on which other platforms might also make the cut.