Software maker Skyhook Wireless Inc. in Boston has struck a deal with Motorola Inc., a major producer of cellphones using Google Inc.'s Android operating system, to add location detection software to future Android phones.
Skyhook makes software that can detect the location of the phone by picking up signals from nearby Wi-Fi hotspots, an alternative or supplement to the popular Global Positioning System, or GPS, technology.
``This is the first Android device maker to license Skyhook,'' said Skyhook chief executive Ted Morgan. The arrangement is similar to Skyhook's relationship with Apple Inc., which uses Skyhook software on its popular iPhone.
But Motorola did not commit to using Skyhook technology on all its future Android phones, and a Motorola spokeswoman could not confirm whether the Skyhook-equipped phones would stop us ing other location detection software that is already built into the Android operating system.
Motorola issued a statement reaffirming its support for Android, a competitor to the iPhone. ``Motorola's relationship with Skyhook demonstrates one of the many benefits of working with Google in an open partnership,'' said the statement. ``We remain committed to the Android platform and to continuing Motorola's partnership with Google.''
A Google spokesman said that his company would not comment on the matter.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but Morgan said that Skyhook will receive a payment from Motorola for each Skyhook-equipped phone sold. ``As long as Motorola sells a lot of phones, we'll do just fine,'' he said.
Skyhook was founded seven years ago to use Wi-Fi technology as an alternative to GPS, which uses radio signals from space to calculate the position of a device on Earth to within a few feet. But it's often impossible to receive GPS signals when the phone user is surrounded by tall buildings or is indoors.
Skyhook acts as a GPS backup by using a map of local Wi-Fi hotspots in homes and businesses. Each hotspot broadcasts a unique digital identifier. Using cars equipped with radio-detection equipment, Skyhook has mapped 200 million hotspots in North America, Europe, and Asia.
A Skyhook-equipped device can calculate its location even when GPS won't work, by picking up signals from the mapped Wi-Fi routers.
Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.
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