Baidu Cloud Set To Launch Next Week

Android and iOS may be seeing massive success in Europe and the United States, but Baidu is poised to compete against both in China. The search based company is planning to launch a new version of its operating system, Baidu Cloud, which will feature cloud-based products such as storage. Executives at Baidu have told Reuters that the company is in talks with "global" partners.

Dell launched the Streak Pro smartphone just before Christmas running Baidu Yi, an operating system built on top of Android but running Chinese services instead of Google's. The new version, Baidu Cloud, is set to be announced next week. Wang Jing, vice president engineering and head of mobile at Baidu, didn't detail exactly who the launch partners for the OS would be, but that the company has "few partnerships coming up."

Rumors have indicated that Baidu is working with Foxconn on a Baidu phone, with The Next Web believing that the device could be Baidu branded and Cloud powered, with the OS eventually licensed out to other manufacturers. While Baidu Yi is based on Android, it's unclear right now if Baidu Cloud is as well. Regardless, the focus on Chinese services rather than Google's will most likely appeal more to the local customers.