A new report from ABI Research “Mobile Linux: Bringing License-Free Operating Systems to Smartphones and Middle-Tier Devices” has found that Linux solutions will be at the center of the drive to bring more content-rich environments to users who currently utilize mid-tier devices.

The research company states that by 2013, nearly one out of every five mid- or high-end mobile devices will use a Linux operating system.

More importantly, it looks increasingly likely that mobile Linux solutions will be an important building block in enabling an application domain that embraces Web-based applications and blended Web/native applications.

Linux is set to see strong growth as issues with framework fragmentation and silicon requirements are alleviated. The growing momentum behind the LiMo Foundation initiative, as well as the marketing boost that has been realized from the entry of Google’s Android solution has been further enhanced by Nokia’s support of the Maemo solution and its purchase of Trolltech.

“Clever choice of public license support, along with software engineering that isolates proprietary items from open source items, allows operating system vendors to generate revenue from a very cost-effective OS solution,” says Stuart Carlaw, ABI Research vice president. He goes on to add that, “Linux OS solutions will be far more cost-effective than incumbent solutions, even when silicon requirements are taken into account, given that a fuller application layer will be included in the standard package and that the burden of customization falls mostly on the independent software vendor.”