Headline: Wireless Messaging Industry Prepares for Information Explosion
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Industry Standards for Data Exchange Will Provide Cost-Effective
Delivery of Information Services
Eleven leading wireless messaging companies, who together serve
more than 60 percent of the nation's approximately 50 million paging
customers, today approved a set of common broadcast service standards
for the wireless delivery of Internet-based information services to
customers. The network standards create common data exchange
interfaces on the Internet, that - for the first time - permit the
cost-effective broadcast of Web content to millions of wireless
subscribers nationwide.
The standards, together with recent technological developments,
also enable the electronic administration of customer accounts. Now,
customers and wireless messaging companies will be able to easily
activate, add and change services directly from the Web a
user-friendly and highly efficient means of managing accounts.
Wireless messaging providers endorsing the new standards include
AirTouch Paging (NYSE:ATI), Ameritech Cellular and Paging (NYSE:AIT), Arch
Communications Group (NASDAQ:APGR), Metrocall (NASDAQ:MCLL), MobileComm (1),
Network Services, PageMart Wireless (NASDAQ:PMWI), PageNet (NASDAQ:PAGE),
Preferred Networks (NASDAQ:PFNT),
SkyTel (NASDAQ:SKYT) and Teletouch Communications, Inc. (AMEX:TLL).
Together, these companies represent more than 30 million paging
customers.
Industry manufacturers Motorola (NYSE:MOT) and Glenayre
Technologies (NASDAQ:GEMS) also endorsed the new standards.
The standards represent the missing technical ingredient as the
wireless messaging industry prepares to introduce a broad array of
information services targeted to customers' specific interests. With
the proliferation of FLEX(TM) technology and FLEXsuite(TM) enablers,
wireless messaging providers have the ability to remotely add or
delete services from literally tens of millions of customer devices.
Additionally, the Internet has spawned an explosion of content that
caters to the specific interests of users. Now, with the new
standards, wireless messaging providers and their content partners can
easily extend Web content to wireless devices and administer these
services electronically.
"These standards complement wireless messaging's inherent
advantages in the delivery of broadcast information," said Iain
Gillott, vice president of worldwide consumer and small business
telecommunications at International Data Corporation. "Paging networks
provide the capability to wirelessly deliver a message to a million
customers as easily as to a single customer. These new standards will
allow wireless messaging companies to provide highly personalized
services, which are inherently more valuable to the end user than
generic information services."
Darryl Sterling, wireless/mobile communications analyst for The
Yankee Group, said that industry studies show a strong demand for
wireless information services targeted to the specific interests of
consumers.
"Taking into consideration the maturing wireless messaging
industry, growth of the Internet and corporate Intranets, and
improvements in network infrastructure and form factors, information
services could be the cornerstone of the wireless messaging industry
in the future," Mr. Sterling said. "These standards should accelerate
the development of this market, ushering in an explosion of
personalized information services for wireless customers. This is one
example of paging carriers setting the standards for cost-effective
quality of service."
Several wireless messaging providers expect to introduce services
utilizing the new standards by early 1999.
For copies of the standards information, as well as information
on the interfaces described, visit the message standards website at
www.msg-stds.org
Motorola, FLEX and FLEXsuite are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Motorola, Inc.
(1) Not associated with MobilComm, Inc. of Cincinnati, Ohio.
CONTACTS: AirTouch Paging
Jonathan Marshall, 415/658-2209
Ameritech Cellular & Paging
Julie Mulzoff, Pager: 800/800-9725
Arch Communications Group
Bob Lougee, 508/870-6771
Glenayre Technologies
Darren Ballegeer, 604/293-5252
Metrocall
Mike Scanlon 703/660-6677 x6500
MobileComm
Krista Grossman, 310/966-5515
Motorola
Dwight Smith, 817/245-2380
Network Services
Henry Ruggeri, 310/615-6577
PageMart Wireless
Lori Burzynski, 214/765-3407
PageNet
Scott Baradell, 972/801-8180
Preferred Networks
David Sullivan, 770/582-3590
SkyTel
Marc Kuykendall, 601/944-7416
Teletouch Communications
J. Richard Carlson, 903/595-8894
KEYWORD: TEXAS
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS COMED
INTERACTIVE/MULTIMEDIA/INTERNET
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