I think there is more to getting these devices to work than making a modem interface card for PDA's. Also, I think the market for this kind of hardware must be up for serious competition. That being said, I know nothing specific about the company or product.
Also, at some stage in the near future, it makes sense that all the PDA's will have phone function built in, which would eliminate the need to attach a device to a cell phone to get connected. They say Qualcomm has a single chip phone processor which will be intergrated. I think the issue is one of getting the PCS systems to be more standard, and then you'll find one PDA suits all.
I think the first thing we have to see is more adoption of high use and that will make packages of time more affordable. After all, one can not afford to do serious internet browsing on any PCS system with the airtime charges the way they are.
The second hurdle to cross will be getting the bandwidth up. I believe most systems will be transmitting at 9600 bps. Not very fast, and this is one reason why companies are looking to slim down the data transferred. It's not just a matter of weeding out bits related to things a cell phone or PDA cannot handle.
Bandwidth and air time should improve in the next 18 months. It's a matter of positioning for now. Proving a format where you either go for it and make all wireless net devices just like desktops, or you make specific function web sites that serve specialty needs.
Here's a company that seems to be in a very good position. Phone.com, formerly known as Unwired Planet. They have a key role in the emerging standard called WAP.
Regards, Mark
Southern LINC Licenses Phone.com UP.Link
PR Newswire - July 14, 1999 08:45
Southern LINC to Offer Customers Access to Wireless Data and Internet Using Motorola Internet-Ready Handsets
ATLANTA, July 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern LINC(R) and Phone.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: PHCM) today announced that Southern LINC has licensed the Phone.com(TM) UP.Link(TM) Server. As the latest move in its plans to offer wireless data and Internet solutions to customers in the Fourth Quarter of 1999, Southern LINC, the integrated digital wireless communication service from Southern Company, plans to incorporate the UP.Link Server as part of its wireless data infrastructure.
(Photo: newscom.com )
Southern LINC intends to use the UP.Link Server to offer a suite of wireless data and Internet services on Motorola iDEN(R) handsets, which run the Phone.com Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)-compatible UP.Browser(TM) microbrowser. These services will be combined with Southern LINC's current offering of two-way radio service, phone service and text and numeric paging, and will be integrated into one handset that can be used throughout Southern LINC's 127,000 square mile coverage area in the Southeast United States.
Phone.com technology and Southern LINC service, along with Motorola Internet-ready handsets, will provide customers mobile access to personal and business information, including:
* E-mail -- Send and receive messages from the field.
* Contacts -- Access a contact name or phone number, without having to
call in or return to the office.
* Calendar -- Schedule and update appointments.
* Travel Directions -- Get driving directions from one location to
another.
* Weather/Traffic -- Monitor weather and traffic reports.
* Stock Quotes -- Stay abreast of investments.
* News -- Monitor the latest news events of the day.
"Southern LINC is dedicated to leveraging our unique coverage and integrated wireless services to further equip our customers with productivity-enhancing tools," said Bob Dawson, president of Southern LINC. "With the combined technology, businesses will have real-time access to information that will help them increase productivity, maximize efficiency and enhance customer service."
Southern LINC customers will have the ability to access corporate databases and intranet-based applications. The UP.Link Server enables Southern LINC to provide customers in industries such as construction, field service and transportation access to applications designed to monitor the location of vehicles, manage work orders and track job flow. In addition, customers can connect their Internet-ready iDEN handset to a laptop or PDA (personal digital assistant), allowing it to serve as a wireless modem.
"By using Phone.com software, Southern LINC is able to provide its mobile customers with valuable services and applications," said Ben Linder, vice president of marketing for Phone.com. "The UP.Link Server's maturity, scalability and reliability combine to provide Southern LINC with rapid time to market and competitive service offerings."
About Phone.com
Phone.com, Inc. (formerly Unwired Planet, Inc.) is a leading provider of software that enables the delivery of Internet-based services to mass-market wireless telephones. Using its software, wireless subscribers have access to Internet- and corporate intranet-based services, including Email, news, stocks, weather, travel and sports. In addition, subscribers have access via their wireless telephones to network operators' intranet-based telephony services, which may include over-the-air activation, call management, billing history information, pricing plan subscription and voice message management. Phone.com is headquartered in Silicon Valley, California and has regional offices in London and Tokyo. Visit phone.com for more information.
About Southern LINC
Southern LINC, which stands for Long-range Integrated Network Communications, covers 127,000 square miles in the Southeast, including both major metro and rural areas in Alabama, Georgia, southeastern Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle. Using Motorola's iDEN technology, Southern LINC combines multiple communication services into one handheld or installed device including Instant LINC (two-way radio), phone service, numeric and text paging and mobile data. More information about Southern LINC can be obtained by calling 800-818-LINC (5462) or visiting the Southern LINC Web site at www.southernlinc.com.
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an international energy company with more than $35 billion in assets through regional utilities and operations around the world. It is the largest producer of electricity in the United States and one of the world's leading independent power producers. Based in Atlanta, Southern Company is the parent firm of Alabama Power, Georgia Power, Gulf Power, Mississippi Power and Savannah Electric. Through its Southern Energy Inc. subsidiary, Southern Company supplies electricity in 10 countries on four continents and has a growing presence in North America with assets in the Northeast, the Midwest, California and Texas. Southern Company also provides energy-related marketing, trading and technical services and offers Southern LINC wireless telecommunications.
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements involving risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Phone.com's limited operating history, potential fluctuations in the company's operating results, uncertainties related to the company's long sales cycle and reliance on a small number of customers, the company's dependence on the acceptance of its products by network operators and wireless subscribers, the company's ability to adequately address the rapidly-evolving market for delivery of Internet-based services through wireless telephones, the need to achieve widespread integration of Phone.com's browser in wireless telephones, competition from companies with substantially greater financial, technical, marketing and distribution resources and the ability of Phone.com to manage a complex set of engineering, marketing and distribution relationships. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Phone.com's prospectus dated June 10, 1999 and in its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
NOTE: Southern LINC and Instant LINC are salesmarks or registered trademarks of Southern LINC. Motorola, iDEN and i1000plus are trademarks or registered trademarks of Motorola, Inc. The Phone.com name and logo and the family of terms carrying the "UP." prefix are trademarks of Phone.com, Inc.
SOURCE Phone.com, Inc.
-0- 07/14/99
/CONTACT: Stacey Liederman of The Headline Group, 404-262-3000, or sliederman@headlinegroup.com, for Southern LINC; or Amanda Cancel of Southern LINC, 678-443-1527, or aecancel@southernco.com; or Rowan Benecke of PR21, 415-439-8811, or rowan_benecke@pr21.com, for Phone.com, Inc.; or Holly James of Text 100 Ltd., 44
/
/Photo: newscom.com
PR Newswire Photo Desk, 888-776-6555 or 201-369-3467/
/Web site: southernlinc.com
/Web site: phone.com |
