BEIJING, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Taiwanese PC maker Acer Inc. has withdrawn from a launch ceremony for a new smartphone that uses a mobile operating system developed by Chinese tech company Aliyun due to pressure from Google Inc., Aliyun said Thursday.
Acer was originally scheduled to launch the CloudMobile A800 smartphone on Thursday with Aliyun, a subsidiary of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. that developed a complementary operating system also named Aliyun, which is being seen by some as a challenger for Google's dominant Android platform.
"We regret to announce that the launch of the smartphone due this afternoon has been canceled because our partner is under direct pressure from Google Inc.," Aliyun said in a statement on Sina Weibo, a popular microblogging site.
"Our partner (Acer) has been notified by Google that if the Aliyun operating system is included with the new phone, Google will scrap Android product agreements and related technology authorization agreements with Acer," Aliyun said.
"We understand and respect the decision made by our partner," Aliyun said, adding that the company believes its operating system can give more alternatives to consumers and manufacturers.
Aliyun said the company sympathizes with its partner and referred to Google's move as "regretful."
The canceled release comes amid discussion about possible alternatives to Android, as the tech industry is closely watching Apple Inc.'s patent war against rival smartphone makers that use Google software.
The Aliyun operating system was under development for three years before being unveiled in July 2011.
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