BharOS- indigenous mobile operating system: The Supreme Court of India has rejected Google’s plea to block CCI’s antitrust order. The Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) holds Google for abusing its dominant position in the Android space by forcing unfair conditions on device manufacturers. This finally that means the tech giant will now have to change it business model for Android operations in India. Google’s Android currently dominates the India market with 95.1 per cent market share. Several operating systems have come up in the last few years to compete against the tech-giant. One such indigenous mobile OS has been developed by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras-incubated firm.
Dubbed as BharOS, the mobile operating system aims to benefit India’s 100 crore mobile phone users. The software can be downloaded on commercial phones and claims to offer a secure environment for its users. BharOS aligns with the government’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Can the new mobile OS beat the long-ruling and dominant Google? How is it different from Android? What is its current status? These and more such questions we try to answer here.
What is BharOS mobile operating system?
BharOS is a mobile operating system developed by IIT Madras incubated firm. The Operating system is developed by JandK Operations Private Limited (JandKops), which has been incubated by IIT Madras Pravartak Technologies Foundation which is a non-profit organisation established by IIT Madras. It is an Android Open Source Project (AOSP) based operating system.
“BharOS Service is a Mobile Operating System built on a foundation of trust, with a focus on providing users more freedom, control, and flexibility to choose and use only the apps that fit their needs. This innovative system promises to revolutionise the way users think about security and privacy on their mobile devices,” Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras describes the software.
What is the current status of BharOS?
BharOS operating system is currently being given to organisations that require confidential communications on restricted apps on mobiles. These users require access to private cloud services through private 5G networks.
BharOS Vs Android- The differences
BharOS is AOSP based operating system. It is somewhat similar to the Android but with few major differences like it comes with No Default Apps (NDA). This means that users have the flexibility to choose only those apps that they are familiar with or trust.
Unlike Google, BharOS does not come with pre-installed apps. Users have the choice to downloaded apps of their choices.
BharOS provides access to only list of apps that have been thoroughly vetted and have met certain security and privacy standards of organisation-specific Private App Store Services (PASS).
BharOS offers ‘Native Over The Air’ (NOTA) updates that can help to keep the devices secure. These updates are automatically downloaded and installed on the device ensuring that the device is always running the latest version of the operating system including the latest security patches and bug fixes.
BharOS has currently partnered with third-party apps like Duck Duck Go and Signal as default browsers and messaging apps.
How does BharOS plans to expand its userbase?
The developers of BharOS plan to collaborate with private industry, Government agencies, Strategic agencies and Telecom Service Providers to increase the usage and adoption of BharOS in the country.
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