The big guys of the modern cellular industry were all quick to weigh in on Google's Android platform. The consensus? A mix between stifled yawns, indifference and a lack of real concern that Google threatens their modern mobile empires. Is that a safe attitude?

The response from the industry was swift. Most of the companies that will compete with Google's new platform offered their opinions of the announcement. Here is a rundown of what the big fish had to say.

Symbian said: "We have seen several attempts to create some sort of standard out of Linux ... but Linux is fundamentally fragmentary. Linux is unmanaged and unmanageable. If Google was not involved the industry would have just yawned and rolled over. Google is swimming against the tide."

Nokia said: "We don't see this as a threat."

UIQ said: "Generally, it's positive for the industry."

Microsoft said: "It really sounds that they are getting a whole bunch of people together to build a phone and that's something we've been doing for five years. [Microsoft doesn't] understand the impact that they are going to have."

Comments like these from Google's chief opponents are to be expected, but do they accurately reflect the real attitudes behind the companies making them? I have to wonder.

Though they all seem to offer up some malaise concerning the new mobile operating platform from Google, I think it is likely a bigger threat than they are willing to admit.

For example, the bulk of handsets sold by Nokia are not those that use its S60 smartphone platform, but rather its Series 40 consumer-focused platform. By offering a lower-coast alternative that is is more tightly integrated to the Internet and Web-based services, Google could erode Nokia's Series 40 user base. Will it happen any time soon? Probably not, but it is something that has to be on Nokia's mind, as well as Google's other competitors.