UPDATE 1-Ericsson, Tivoli to develop upgradeable phones
Reuters, 12/13/2000 07:48
(Adds Ericsson executive quotes, share price)
STOCKHOLM, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Swedish telecoms equipment maker Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERICY) said on Wednesday it would join IBM's (NYSE:IBM) Tivoli Systems to develop managed devices offering mobile Internet users greater flexibility.
"Under the agreement, Ericsson will incorporate Tivoli device management technologies into Ericsson's next generation of mobile communication devices," it said in a statement.
The idea is to make it easy to reconfigure mobile phones and download new software remotely to take advantage of the new functions which the coming generation of phone services will offer via the Internet.
Users of the managed phones would be able to add or upgrade services such as stock trading or medical monitoring without complicated configuration changes.
Jan Ahrenbring, Ericsson Mobile Communications marketing and communications vice president, told Reuters Ericsson hoped to launch its first mobile phone equipped with Tivoli software in the second half of next year.
"We are the first (mobile phone maker) to cooperate in the field of software products such as those developed by Tivoli," he said.
Ericsson, which makes the bulk of its sales and profits from selling network infrastructure, said it expected mobile Internet to overtake the fixed Internet in the number of users in 2003, reaching one billion mobile Internet users in 2005.
"Ericsson is dedicated to driving rapid expansion of the mobile Internet," Ahrenbring said in the statement.
He said the alliance would assist company IT departments and provide new revenue streams for resellers, operators and service providers."
The alliance would also focus on support and helpdesk services, Ericsson said.
At 1150 GMT, Ericsson's share was almost two percent down at 125.5 Swedish crowns ($12.87), narrowly underperforming European technology peers.
Ericsson and Tivoli also aim to propose in the first half of 2001 international standards for managing next generation mobile devices.
"In helping to establish global standards for mobile device management, our companies are taking huge steps towards simplifying the introduction of enhanced mobile services," Tivoli Systems Chairman Jan Lindelow said in the statement. stockholm.newsroom@reuters.com))
($1=9.751 Swedish Crown)
Copyright 2000, Reuters News Service |
