I wasn’t alive for much of the 1980’s but I sure know the history that unfolded in technology during the time- and they say that history repeats itself. Except that this time, Microsoft nor IBM is involved- it’s Google and Apple this go around. And this time the war isn’t centered around the PC, its focus deals with the mobile computing platform. Apple is still building their own hardware bundled with their own software without licensing and their foe is still licensing its software to various hardware manufacturers. The only real difference this time around is that Apple is the favorite, and with Apple’s new market cap, Steve Jobs isn’t going to be fired this time.

I wrote last August (Apple vs Google?) that there was a rift developing between the two titans of tech. That apparent rift has escalated into a full blown war. There are battles being fought between the two on several fronts; OS (Chrome vs OS X), mobile (hardware & software), advertising, TV, and even search.

It’s an intriguing story. Two companies that probably considered Microsoft their chief villain for so long now find themselves in such positions of strength that they have no one else to turn their attention toward except each other. Google’s co-founders have idolized Steve Jobs with open praise, consider him a mentor, and were regular visitors to Jobs’ office in Google’s early days. Sergey Brin was even close enough to take regular walks with Jobs where they discussed the future of technology and potential collaborative projects. When Apple unveiled the iPhone in 2007, Google CEO Eric Schmidt was present on stage saying, “Steve, my congratulations to you, this product is going to be hot.” Of course Google was the default search engine on the device and also provided their Maps technology in a native app. They shared board members, praised each other lavishly, and shared the valley in peace. Relations were so cushy that observers ofen used the term “AppleGoo” to describe the two companies.

Fast forward to the present. Apple has sued HTC (makers of many popular Android based phones), the iPhone now has Bing for their search, Apple is getting serious about mobile advertising (a direct strike to Google’s core competency), Jobs has called Google’s motto of “Don’t Be Evil” “bullshit”, and has also made it clear who’s at fault for the sudden new feud (“We did not enter the search business. They entered the phone business. Make no mistake: they want to kill the iPhone. We won’t let them.”)

This time the battle is for mobile supremacy. That means phones and tablets. The days of the desktop and laptop are coming to an end. Apple knows it, Google knows it, and startups are forming to be at the forefront of the surging mobile platform. Google is vocally serious about the cloud and Apple is at least making moves that hint their strategy also includes the cloud (1 2).

I love both companies and their products. I use GMail, Google is my go-to search engine, I use an iPhone, a MacBook Pro, and even love my girlfriend’s iPad (Despite what I wrote!). Should we be excited about the increased competition that will ultimately raise the bar and benefit consumers? Or should we be worried about two huge platforms that don’t play nice together making syncing and collaborative work carry technical implications? And is Steve Jobs repeating the same mistakes he made in the early-80′s?

Even with the official announcement of the iPhone 4, and my complete satisfaction with it over the past two years, I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t seriously considering a switch to a Verizon Android-based device when my contract expires in July. Android phones have made some quantum leaps in the past year and there are two big devices that are supposedly about to hit the market for Verizon in the next month or so (Samsung’s Galaxy S and Motorola’s Shadow X). I still haven’t made up my mind, but that fact that I’m pondering a switch is a win for Google.

Ultimately, it comes down to two sensational companies evolving with the natural ebb and flow of market demand and technological innovation. We’re on the cusp of the mobile platform becoming the de facto way in which we access our information. And while the notion that two locked platforms could inhibit cross-use (thus stifling productivity), we should be excited that someone has decided to at least take on the role of challenger to Apple in the battle for mobile market share. I’ll close with a quote that Vic Gundotra (Google VP Engineering) used during  Google’s recent I/O conference, a quote that I believe will be remembered for a long, long time.

If Google didn’t act, we faced a draconian future. A future where one man, one company, one device, one carrier would be our only choice. That’s a future we do not want. If you believe in openness, choice, and innovation, then welcome to Android.

EDIT: The Motorola “Shadow” I referenced is actually called “Droid X”, and Engadget got their hands on it.