Regarding mobile internet connection through a laptop...
One example of this is in the area of CRM (Customer Relationship Management). This area is one of the fastest growing segments in the enterprise software market. The top company is Siebel Systems whose main application is sales force automation. The other related area is field-service applications which I believe is also a huge market. Today, a field sales person using these products from CRM vendors download a subset of the data from the enterprise database into an access or other local database on their laptops. As they travel the applications work against local information and when they return all this information is synchronized back with the enterprise database. This tedious process works (just look at Siebel's revenue growth) but the key missing component is wireless access. With wireless access, the field can get the latest information and also provide latest updates back to the enterprise: having up-to-date information available to the entire company is key to better customer relationships.
Most companies who are evaluating these products today are demanding wireless solutions from CRM vendors. They want to make sure that the products have the right architecture for wireless use sometime in the near future. Most companies (that I have talked to) feel that mobile access to these applications (through the internet) is a key requirement for them to be successful. These applications can use the all the bandwidth, they can get. This notion that 9.6 Kb/sec or 64 Kb/sec will be sufficient for mobile applications is a joke.
IMO, many service providers are under estimating the need for wireless data. There is lot of talk about demand for wireless internet connections from cell phones and other devices. This is big and "exciting" market but the key short time driver will be wireless access of desktop applications that is available today (such as CRM applications). In my view, it is going to take just one or two service providers to get this rolling, once this happens everyone will jump to match this, and with the inherent advantages of 1x and HDR, the drawbacks of GPRS, EDGE, etc., will become more and more obvious. Already, many observers must wonder about the earlier FUD created by GSM crowd with regards to 2G standards (that CDMA will never work, it violates the laws of physics, etc.). Now they are saying that GPRS, EDGE , Angel, whatever. is an easier way to upgrade to 3G, and by the way , "you don't really need the higher bandwidth provide by 1x and HDR" anyway. You have to wonder many times they can continue to spread this kind of FUD before people catch on? |
