OPEN SOURCE DEVELOPER OUTFIT Firefox has announced a partnership with Panasonic to produce Smart TVs.

The fledgling Firefox operating system (OS) will be used to power a range of smart TVs in an effort to "promote Firefox OS and its open eco-system".

Details are sparse at present with no information about release dates, specifications or territories released. However the move strikes yet another blow in the battle for the developed world's living rooms.

The news follows LG's announcement on Monday that it too will be running a new old operating system on its Smart TVs, the formerly missing and presumed dead WebOS.

One could easily be forgiven for thinking that this marks the beginning of a format war. However given that WebOS, Android and Firefox all lend themselves to common standards and protocols such as HTML5 very well, it seems to be a threat only for early adopters of televisions tied to proprietary walled-garden internet services and delivery encoding schemes.

"Through Panasonic's partnership with Mozilla, we will create further innovation in smart TV technologies and features, which will take consumers to a whole new level of interaction and connectivity inside and outside of the home," said Yuki Kusumi, director of the TV Business Division of Panasonic's AVC Networks Company.

Meanwhile, Firefox OS is also being brought to a new device from ZTE, which had previously only marketed the Firefox phone in Spain, and from LG, which clearly believes that the phone market can support yet another player.

Panasonic is expected to announce its first products with Firefox OS on board later this year.

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Mozilla partners with Panasonic for Smart TV