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To: gdichaz who wrote (44213)	7/9/2001 9:15:05 AM
From: Eric L	Respond to of 54805

re: Openwave Systems & Nokia - WAP 2.0 Near Term & Takes WAP More GUI You have heard me echo the 'WAP is Crap' and 'I Hate WAP' litany many times. WAP 2.0 potentially makes WAP more appealing and it arrives at just about the same time as 'always on' packet data becomes available thanks to CDMA 1xRTT & GSM GPRS. Initial deliveries of 1xRTT & GPRS handsets will, however, be using the WAP 1.2.1 microbrowser. I think we need only to think back to 1994 when browsers started to evolve (Mosaic, GNN Messenger, Netscape - eventually IE) to remind ourselves that at one time the internet was used by few, and browser evolution had a major impact on changing the paradigm. Content and services, of course become key & in low to moderately priced phones we are still faced with a very small display, which limits the appeal of what Nokia calls. "Internet in the Pocket". Color may spice that up. Regardless, WAP 2.0 promises to be a key enabler of the wireless data tornado, and Openwave appears to have evolved as a key player as it evolved from Unwired Planet to Phone.com. Nokia seems to be a distant second in WAP Servers, and influence on WAP standards, but I confess I have not followed the WAP game to closely. WAP is an open standard but Openwave's implementation of it seems to be the de facto standard. >> WAP 2.0 Adds Color, Customization By Brad Smith July 9, 2001 Wireless Week The next generation of WAP specifications will make an appearance during the next few months, and new handsets will use the upgrade to offer color screens, pop-up menus and customization. The new handsets will be based on WAP 2.0 microbrowser specifications, a collection of 55 protocols that has been in the works for more than a year and will be formally published on July 31. Early users of WAP 2.0 have given it high marks for attractiveness and usability. Some in the industry expect it to give wireless Internet use a boost, especially in North America and Europe. Others are skeptical that an improved browser will lure users, especially those who already have had a negative experience with WAP. Whatever the impact of WAP 2.0 on the marketplace, there is no question that it is a major step forward. Scott Goldman, who will step down Aug. 31 as CEO of the WAP Forum, likens 2.0 to the release of a major software product such as Microsoft Windows 2000. Goldman says the most important factor is that every major player in the industry, including NTT DoCoMo, has agreed to the protocol. "Everybody is committed to 2.0 for mobile Internet services," Goldman says. "That is the most important thing for content developers and handset manufacturers to know." From a technology point of view, the two main underpinnings of the upgrade are its use of xHTML (extensible hypertext markup language) coding and Internet-style security. The former means that developers can use the same tools to write applications for both the wired and wireless Internet. The second plugs a tiny security hole found in earlier WAP versions, using the Web's Secure Socket Layer technology for end-to-end security. More important from a user standpoint is the attractiveness of color screen support, pop-up menus, graphics, animation and large file download. Companies with their own line of WAP-based browsers, such as Openwave Systems Inc. and Nokia, plan on using the 2.0 protocol. Openwave has a "universal edition" and a "WAP edition," the former based on WAP 2.0 and the latter on WAP's earlier version. Both will support the new graphical user interface. Mike Grubbs, senior product manager for Openwave's mobile browsers, says the company's research showed that WAP's initial interface was too complicated and required too many keystrokes for general consumers. Openwave designed a GUI that had a familiar Web feel with pop-up menus. Handset manufacturers Alcatel, Sagem, Samsung, Siemens and Telit all plan to use Openwave's new browser in phones shipping this summer and fall. Openwave's added downloadable screen savers and wallpaper also provide new revenue opportunities, Grubbs says. Will these enhancements mean a rosy WAP future? Goldman is the first to admit that WAP 2.0 is not a total panacea but rather a framework for user-friendly and robust applications that people ultimately will want to use. And at the end of the day, it is content and services that will drive the adoption of the wireless Internet. << - Eric -