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Symantec Executive: Co Will 'Evaluate' Working With Google Android

By Jessica Hodgson, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

SAN FRANCISCO -(Dow Jones)- Symantec Corp. (SYMC), the world's largest security software maker, will "evaluate" working with Google Inc.'s (GOOG) Android operating system if computers begin to use it significantly, an executive said Thursday.

The comments by Janice Chaffin, who heads Symantec's consumer-security software division, underscore that technology executives see Android, which at least one computer maker will use on a trial basis, as a potential long-term challenger to Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) Windows. Acer Inc. (ACEIY) said recently it planned to launch a computer using Android.

The computer is a so-called "netbook," a low-cost, lightweight computer. Windows is the dominant operating system on personal computers, with over 90% market share globally, but netbook manufacturers have recently experimented with alternative systems such as the open source Linux and, more recently, Android.

While Chaffin emphasized that the overwhelming majority of Symantec's products were sold to work on Windows and that Windows would remain important for some time, she said Symantec would monitor the progress of Android and respond if appropriate. Her comments suggest that the company could launch versions of the Norton antivirus software suite, or other PC security tools, for Android.

"Today we're on Windows," Chaffin said. "We're going to evaluate things like [ Android] as it goes forward."

Netbooks present a challenge not just for Microsoft but for other software makers such as Symantec, as purchasing decisions are increasingly driven by the need for lower-cost software that puts fewer demands on computer hardware.

Chaffin was speaking at an event for financial analysts in San Francisco on Thursday as executives at the company talked about their strategy.

-By Jessica Hodgson, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-439-6455; jessica.hodgson@ dowjones.com

  (END) Dow Jones Newswires
  06-11-091420ET
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