What I would like everyone to take away from all of this is the fact that OTA is the magic bullet. Both with regard to monetizing and problem solving the mobile sync headache for most Linux users. But alas, for most people the reality of just how far off this might be has long since set in for them. Many of them have gone ahead and taken things into their own hands by allowing their data to be at (what I consider) great risk. These brave individuals have decided to throw caution to the wind and allow Google's data centers to become masters of their data. This has made Google's cross-platform synchronization a viable solution for a growing number of people.

BlackBerry & Windows Mobile - Meet Google Synchronization
Despite my reluctance in putting this much power in the hands of one single data storage entity, Google has stepped up to the plate for BlackBerry users, and others outside in the open source community have jumped up to the plate for those using Windows Mobile devices.

Clearly, this provides the simplest, least obnoxious way to make mobile sync a reality for Linux users, even at the potential cost of privacy.

Step up or step off -- the choice is yours
At the end of the day, I foresee a time where Google will become "it" for mobile sync, and mobile manufacturers will be whining to regulators that, because of this, Google has managed to corner the market making it difficult for them to compete in their own realm. Clearly I am speculating, but you get the general idea.

Preventing this is as simple as mobile manufacturers -- or even mobile carriers that provide the phone service itself -- providing solutions that do not rely on Google and are genuinely cross platform friendly. Mobile manufacturers and even carriers should do this if they wish to ensure that they are not eventually edged out by Google or perhaps another mobile solution provider. As stated previously, the tools are already out there, we just need someone to bring them together and provide a common means of making mobile synchronization available for everyone.

Story courtesy of Intranet Journal