Mozilla has announced the last version of Firefox OS on smartphones will be version 2.6 and it will stop supporting the operating system in May. Two months ago a Senior Vice President (SVP) revealed that the web-centered OS platform designed for manufacturing budget devices in developing countries would stop being available on mobile phones.
Ari Jaaksi is Mozilla's SVP of Connected Devices. In December at the Mozlando developer event he shared that the company's smartphone experiment would end soon, according to Engadget.
Mozilla's announcement reveals that it plans to end its support of Firefox OS following the release of version 2.6. After May no Mozilla staff support will be available for Firefox OS for smartphones.
The company also announced that Marketplace still stop taking submissions for Android, tablets, and desktops starting March 29. It is the company's home for apps developed for various devices.
However, Mozilla will accept Firefox OS apps until 2017, according to Venture Beat. It has not set an exact date for when it will stop accepting the apps.
Mozilla is basically pulling out of the smartphone game due to the tough competition. That includes tech giants Apple, Google, and Microsoft.
Another key issue was the HTML5 foundation of the platform. It was unable to provide the same app experience as other platforms.
The company might have a slightly better chance of getting smart TV market share. For example, last month Mozilla announced that Firefox OS will power Panasonic ultra high-definition (UHD) TVs.
In addition, the company will focus on the Internet of Things (IoT) market. There are more opportunities for growth.
Mozilla shared that its Connected Devices team has been testing a new product innovation. It has passed the first stage of testing.
Last December a leaked document revealed what the company could be working on. It includes a Firefox OS tablet, smart TV stick, RaspBerry Pi keyboard computer, and router.
Mozilla unveiled Firefox OS for mobile devices in 2012 and since then only a few devices were launched including ZTE Open in 2013 and Firefox for TVs last May. It remains to be seen which new connected devices the company has in the works.
Here's Mozilla's Firefox for TV: