By Lorraine Luk
Asia’s richest man Li Ka–shing is predicting the rise of a third mobile operating system, fueling speculation that Mr. Li might be cooperating with Samsung Electronics Co. to help develop its Tizen platform.
Mr. Li, 85 years old, is often referred to as “Superman” in Hong Kong because of his business prowess and track record in spotting the right trends. His business empire, Hutchison Whampoa Ltd., stretches from telecommunications to ports and hotels. Hutchison has operations in 52 countries and employs about 270,000 staff worldwide.
Mr. Li has also made a number of high-profile investments in technology companies in the past, most notably a $60 million stake in Facebook Inc. in 2007 through his personal technology investment arm called Horizons Ventures. The private investment arm has also invested in music streaming service provider Spotify Ltd., Tel Aviv-based social traffic and navigation company Waze, and newsreader app Summly.
When asked about technology investment opportunities and ways to spot them, Mr. Li said in an interview with China’s Nanfang Media Group: “I enjoy keeping up with latest technology trends. I can also tell you that in addition to (Apple’s) iOS and Android, a new mobile operating system will come to the market soon.”
Hutchison separately confirmed Mr. Li’s statement but declined to comment on the name of the new operating system and potential cooperation with Samsung. Samsung declined to comment.
Although Mr. Li did not disclose more details about the new mobile operating system, many are interpreting the statement as Mr. Li having an interest in Tizen. Samsung has long been working with Intel Corp.on Tizen, an alternative mobile operating system that has the potential to compete with iOS and Android.
Mr. Li is known to have a good relationship with the South Korean technology giant. Last year, Mr. Li met with Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee in Hong Kong and they discussed ways to deepen their partnership in areas including handsets, next-generation wireless technology and construction.
Mr. Li’s global telecommunications unit 3 Group serves about 76 million users in markets including Italy, the U.K. Sweden, Austria, Ireland and Hong Kong . His 3 Group carries Samsung smartphones globally, as well as iPhones from Apple .
