It is not a vicious circle. You start small, and at first you attract/migrate users and developers who are already likely to migrate to your platform. In the case of Maemo, these are going to be Symbian/S60, WinMo, and of course various Javaphone people. By doing this, you are growing user base and developer base. Once your platform (Maemo in our case) is established on the market, you may try to take over a niche or two, such as business people using RIM devices. Of course, you will need right applications for that, and agreements with cell phone operators as well. And only when you reach a big enough cloud, only then can you take on such odious targets as iPhone. Coincidentally, by that time Jobs will safely occupy a spot at some Californian cemetery, making the competition easier for you.