Google on Monday raised the curtain on its widely expected G-Phone, introducing a Linux-based mobile operating system and an alliance of 34 companies.

Mountain View, California-based Google's Open Handset Alliance around its open-source Android operating system marks a good first step toward breaking down some barriers in the mobile market, Skyward Mobile CEO Jeremy De Bonet said.

“The big problem is carrier control of both the distribution and the economics of the mobile market, and while Google does not correct that problem, it will change the way consumers think about mobile,” he said.

Google's Open Handset Alliance debut still left a lot of unanswered questions about the search king’s long-term plans in the mobile market. Mobile developers see Google's move capable of raising consumer awareness of what is possible on mobile phones.

But Google CEO Eric Schmidt was vague about whether the company intends to market an actual phone or would leave the hardware efforts to alliance members such as Motorola and HTC.

“We are not announcing a Google Phone today, but you can imagine a thousand G-Phones as a result of the 34 founding partnerships and the many more that will be joining this initiative,” Mr. Schmidt said.

Google's Linux-based mobile operating system Android will give application developers access via a standard open-source license. The software comes from the startup named Android, which Google acquired in 2005.

Still, adding a new operating system to the mix hardly seems like a solution, said Mr. De Bonet, founder of the Woburn, Massachusetts-based mobile app startup Skyward Mobile.

Google touted the open model as an improvement over Microsoft's mobile software environment.

“The difference between Android and Windows Mobile or Symbian is that third-party developers are free to develop apps on top of it and they can modify it to suit their own needs,” said Andy Rubin, Google’s director of mobile platforms and founder of Android.

The search leader also trotted out its alliance members--a mix of handset makers, software developers, mobile chip makers such as Qualcomm, content providers, and a few carriers such as Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile.

The move is also significant because application developers have long complained that the glut of operating systems and delays associated with seeking individual carrier approvals before their products can reach the consumer have made the mobile market difficult.

“The carrier restricts your business model to one-time purchase or subscription, whereas in an open system like Google’s you would see ad-supported and commerce-enabled business models,” Mr. De Bonet said.

Google has challenged the fact that carriers act as gatekeepers between innovators and consumers, and the company spent much of the summer talking about its plan to bid for spectrum at auction next year.

But Mr. Schmidt on Monday did not provide a clear answer as to whether Google still plans to participate in next year's auction.