The China Operating System, or COS, a multi-platform operating system unveiled last week that seemed set to challenge Google Android and Apple iOS has been criticized by anonymous Chinese Internet users.

Several unnamed netizens have posted comments online querying whether the development of COS involved breaches of intellectual copyright — although they failed to provide details.

The operating system, known as China Operating System, or COS, was developed by the Institute of Software at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with Shanghai Lian Tong Network Communication Technology Inc.

Anonymous sources online have suggested that some of the engineers involved in developing COS previously worked for the High Technology Computer Corporation, the producer of HTC smart phones, meaning they might possibly have plagiarized Android.

However, the netizens did not elaborate on the identities of those engineers. Nor did they say how a producer of cell phones helped in developing an operating system.

Other anonymous netizens asked why the developers of COS did not open a download channel for the operating system on the Internet. Among the possible explanations bandied about by netizens was that the developer did not posses intellectual property rights for COS.

The Institute of Software Chinese Academy of Sciences did not respond to the rumors on Thursday.

China Youth Daily published a report on Thursday saying that the institute should give netizens a satisfactory explanation, because the institute relies on State funding.