| Sumario: | HTML5 is an open standard that enables new functionality in the mobile web ecosystem. Speculation by companies around its potential presents an opportunity to view how notions of ‘openness’ are employed to create and support mobile platforms. Particularly, Internet-based companies such as Google seek a foothold in mobile industries which have traditionally been dominated by carriers and device manufacturers. I compare two paradigms of openness and suggest a third in this article.Open sourcedescribes the development of the HTML5 standard by multiple stakeholders in online industries.Open innovationis a process where value is being constantly created and captured, such as when companies make app developer tools public but carefully manage the point-of-sale ‘app stores’. A third type –rhetorical openness– describes claims that strategically bolster a corporate position. Rhetorical openness is increasingly necessary for mobile companies needing to balance multiple stakeholders, appeal to developers, and convince the public of their good intentions. Disputes around the politics of online and mobile media will be increasingly conducted through, using, and around these three forms of openness.
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