In 2013, a new giant may rise to challenge Apple‘s iOs and Google‘s Android. Tizen is the new giant.

This company that you may have never heard of has a long history behind it. Samsung’s collaboration with the Enlightenment Foundation Libraries (EFL) for years was known as LiMo or Linux platform for mobile. LiMo’s name was changed to Tizen in 2011 when Intel joined the project. In 2012, LiMo Foundation changed its name to Tizen Association, and Sprint agreed to become part of the Tizen association. An alpha code called Magnolia was released. Tizen 2.0 is expected to be released this month.
The Japanese publication Daily Yomiuri reports that Samsung will release the first smart phone based on Tizen this year. There are reports that NTT Docomo, the biggest wireless carrier in Japan, will support Tizen. Vodafone in the UK and France Telecom in France are also reported to be on board.