Mozilla will be ending its development of Firefox OS for mobiles by May this year. This is three years after the OS was launched. The OS had been developed with the main aim of challenging mobile platforms including Apple and Google. Due to the drop in its popularity, the company has decided to end its further development. Also, makers are hesitant in launching new smartphones that have Firefox OS due to lesser features when compared with Android. As per George Roter, a developer with Mozilla the conditions are not great for Firefox with other platforms having already set up a huge user base along with apps library. There are millions of apps in Google’s Play store and Mozilla is not even close to them. This in led has failed it to win the race on commercial smartphones. Henceforth, Mozilla is going to focus on development of open source software for several Internet of Things devices. These will vary from connected cars to light bulbs. Mr Roter also said that they have thus far finished three projects including Smart TV application with more projects to join soon. The development and support is going to end by May 2016, after the upcoming Firefox OS 2.6 has been released. One will not be eligible for support and upgrades even if they have a Firefox enabled smartphone after this.
