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To: who cares? who wrote (8610)	6/30/2000 3:39:25 PM
From: StockDung	Respond to of 10354

One wireless viewpoint: 'WAP is crap' thats what it says. Yup, WAP is Crap, thats what it does say. Thursday June 29 09:15 PM EDT One wireless viewpoint: 'WAP is crap' By Nicole Manktelow, ZDNet Australia Wireless application protocol -- seen as the mobile market's 'Next Big Thing' -- is flopping, says an analyst, hampered by high prices, too many content restrictions and not enough apps. Too-high prices, a lack of applications and carrier-imposed content restrictions will prevent WAP -- touted as the mobile market's next big thing -- from being more than a "toy" in Australia. Most WAP (wireless application protocol) users can only view the content prescribed by their carrier. And at an average cost of 20 cents per minute, there's little reason to keep them interested, according to telecommunications industry analyst Paul Budde. • Palm: Make all handhelds wirelessly enabled by year-end • Free PC software tune-ups • Web Surfer Power Tools • Beginner's Guide to MP3 "WAP is crap -- there are a lot of problems in the area. It is a toy for companies to learn about. So far, none of the applications are compelling," Budde told ZDNet Australia. Budde said his prognosis is not surprising, because "in Germany and the UK, WAP has flopped. It is seen as a dead duck". Quotes and horoscopes not enough Stock quotes and horoscopes are the two most popular applications on the Cable & Wireless Optus WAP service, according to a CWO spokeswoman. However, with a small pool of subscribers, there's little to suggest these applications will increase WAP's appeal. "There are maybe 5,000 users (in Australia), which means for a number one application there are maybe 500 people using it -- Geez! Why would people use WAP and pay high charges like 20 cents a minute for horoscopes?" Budde said the industry has to come back with better prices and better applications or WAP is doomed here. Many WAP customers are restricted, one way or another, to viewing only the content provided by their telco's WAP portal. Enclosed services have been described as "walled gardens," where the territory within is closely guarded by carriers. "It's very attractive for a telecom operator who wants to control the customer relationship," said Adrian Rischmueller, CEO of startup Jumbuck, which operates a Web to WAP interface and makes WAP-based chat software. Recreating the Net "Some telcos believe charging for content is more profitable than service charges, so the customer relationship is very important. The aim of the game is to make money serving content through the portal. We don't think it's a very fair scenario," Rischmueller said. Cable & Wireless Optus operates its WAP portal as a walled garden and "started off this way, based on customer research," CWO general manager of Mobile, Internet and Data Finola Thompson said. "Customers didn't want the Net recreated. We may change (the structure) as it evolves, but there is no immediate time frame on it," she said. Thompson confirmed that some partners pay Cable & Wireless Optus to have their content available to WAP users. "There are a whole range of business models. They pay or we pay, based on what the content is, if they are already producing it," or other factors, she said. Speak your mind Discuss this story with other people. [Start a Conversation] (Requires Yahoo! Messenger) Carriers are desperate to find a way to make money from WAP, according to Budde. "They turn to portals and try to get advertising. But advertisers soon find it doesn't work," he said. "If companies try to run closed portals it defeats the purpose. In Australia you can get away with murder in telecommunications, particularly with our self-regulatory system (but eventually) users will vote with their feet and go away." For some WAP users it is the handsets themselves that restrict movement from portal to portal. The Motorola T2288 phone, for example, does not allow users to enter a URL. Instead users can only take links provided by the carrier. The market-leading Nokia 7110 has no such restriction, but subscribers to Telstra's WAP service have been unable to connect with the handset due to what Telstra describes as "interoperability" issues between the carrier's server and the handset's browser, as reported by ZDNet Australia last week.

To: who cares? who wrote (8610)	6/30/2000 3:40:49 PM
From: StockDung	Respond to of 10354

ZiaSun Announces WAP Initiatives for Stock Tracking On U.S., European and Asian Exchanges SOLANA BEACH, Calif., March 7 /PRNewswire/ -- ZiaSun Technologies, Inc. (OTC BB: ZSUN - news) (www.ziasun.com), a profitable Internet holding company, today announced that its online investing portal at www.swiftrade.com will soon offer stock prices and financial information by low-cost wireless connectivity using Wireless Application Protocol (WAP). Swiftrade, Inc. is a subsidiary of ZSUN's wholly owned subsidiary Momentum Internet, Inc. WAP is the worldwide standard for providing Internet communications and advanced telephony services on digital mobile phones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other wireless terminals. ``WAP technology will change our lives with as profound an effect as the Internet,'' said Michael Wilson, head of Momentum's WAP development team. ``WAP will be widely used for wireless content delivery on the next generation of mobile communicators. In the near future, it will enable people worldwide to receive sports results, weather reports, financial news and stock prices from their mobile phones and hand-held devices just as they do now from Internet sites.'' Swiftrade will provide stock price information services for the Hong Kong, UK and US exchanges as well as international financial news from Reuters to anyone with a WAP-enabled device anywhere in the world. ``Swiftrade and ZiaSun are at the forefront of the mobile e-commerce revolution, and will continue to provide a wide range of advanced solutions to meet this demand,'' Mr. Wilson added. ``This early positioning strengthens our ability to carve out strong market share as widespread use of mobile phones fast approaches, with wireless access to the Internet facilitating the purchase of goods and services through hand-held devices.'' The companies also noted that industry analysts are forecasting rapid increases in wireless communications. In a recent report, Lehman Brothers stated that there are two times as many mobile units as personal computers in the US. The report also noted that growth in wireless communications is more rapid in Europe due to standardization of the region's GSM platform and more cost competitive pricing than in the US. About Swiftrade Swiftrade, Inc. enables investors worldwide to trade on the London Stock Exchange, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and all major US stock exchanges, including the NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ and the OTC Bulletin Board. The online portal delivers 24/7 access to quotes, account information and buy/sell orders (executed during local market hours) as well as financial news, data and analysis from Reuters. About ZiaSun Technologies ZiaSun Technologies, Inc. is a leading Internet holding company focused on e-commerce and specialized online support services within North America, Asia and other international markets. The Company's Internet offering includes Asia4Sale (www.asia4sale.com), AuctionAsia (www.auctionasia.net), MEDIAhits (www.mediahits.com), Momentum Asia (www.momentumasia.com), Momentum Finance (www.mfinance.com -- a top 100 financial website), Momentum Internet (www.momentumplus.com), Online Investors Advantage (www.i-advantage.com), PINmail (www.pinmail.com), Search Dragon (www.searchdragon.com), ServiceLive (www.servicelive.com) and Swiftrade (www.swiftrade.com). Note: Any statements released by ZiaSun Technologies, Inc. that are forward-looking are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Editors and investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements invoke risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company's business prospects and performance. These include economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors discussed in the statements. SOURCE: ZiaSun Technologies, Inc