Monday, January 21, 2002		On Hardware

Different mobiles for various countries
H.S. Jatana

MOBILE commerce (m-commerce) is now causing just as much of a worldwide stir as the idea of e-commerce did a few years back. The excitement is, if anything, even more intense - while sceptics could point out that the penetration of PCs into households is still relatively low, the popularity of mobile phones has made the case for m-commerce impossible to deny.

As the same time, the phenomenon is leading to the development or appropriation of a host of new technologies to support payment, ID, security and other key aspects of the mobile commerce experience. The pioneers of m-commerce, whether giant corporations or inspired entrepreneurs, are seeking technology combining power and proven reliability to enable their enterprises. For the reason, many of the major players are turning to both smart card technology and electronic cash to help make m-commerce a reality.In recent years, terrestrial mobile telephony systems have been going from strength to strength. As marketing and pricing packages improve, not only are narrowband mobile services growing all over the world, but the future is already beginning to arrive thanks to wireless access to the Internet becoming a reality.

Third generation systems (3G) are being developed and operators' licenses are being awarded in various countries. However, the success of mobile communications has resulted in shortage of spectrum.

Technology development to meet projected new demand is well under way, entailing the development of new phones capable of making and receiving video, e-mail, wideband data and high-quality voice, as well as the infrastructure to support the transmission of 3G data rates.

The projected outcomes for the new industry are excellent. Even though it is started at virtually zero, a recent study predicts that mobile commerce will increase by 1000 per cent in the next five years. The report also notes that in this one area of high-tech, the USA lags well behind on a global basis.

Mobile usage in Asia is also booming, particularly in Japan, where advanced "i-mode' phones are driving the industry. China represents a vast new opportunity for mobile communications and m-commerce development. Given the relatively 'unwired' nature of the country, it is leaping straight to wireless networks on a huge scale.

It is almost impossible to miss the hype around WAP phones. An amazing selling job is being done to get people to buy phones, without really looking at the content that can be accessed, which is rather like selling someone a cable channel without them knowing what the programmes would be. The problem here is not the phone, but the false impression given to people that users can surf the Internet in the same way as from a PC. However, this is not the case. Users do not have normal access to the Net but instead have to go through a WAP-enabled portal.

Currently the content landscape of WAP is empty, and there is much activity going on to fill it. Once this is achieved, then we shall see the true worth of WAP.

WAP not only needs handset development but also WAP architecture equipment that must scale across existing 2G networks, including GSM, CDMA and W-CDMA access systems. The WAP model has a WAP gateway between the normal client and server. The client element sends its request via the WAP gateway or proxy using the Wireless Session Protocol (WSP), which is in essence a binary version of HTTP.

While Europeans are coming to grips with WAP phones for mobile Web-Surfing, the Japanese have embraced a rival system called i-mode. Since its launch in 1999, the system from NTT has gained over 7 million subscribers. Access charges are based on the volume of data downloaded rather than time online. Costs for the digital services available are added to the phone bill.

In Japan, i-mode far outsells its rival, based on the faster and technically superior WAP, because it is cheaper and has been well marketed. Currently the system is available only in Japan, but NTT is said to be preparing to take i-node worldwide, posing a serious challenge to WAP for dominance of the mobile Internet.

Much is happening on the mobile scene and one development that could have far-reaching consequences is the new standard for remote connection between mobile and peripheral devices, known as Bluetooth.

Launched in 1998, it proposed the use of short-range radio rather than the infrared systems currently defined in 802.11 for wireless Local Area Network (LAN) operation. Bluetooth is rapidly becoming the accepted standard and looks certain to oust 802.11 from the mobile scene as it has several advantages. The development of Bluetooth is under the control of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group that now has 1400 members and is moving towards being a solution for device interconnection with zero implications for handset cost and size.

Bluetooth is not just technically superior but, as a standard, solves many interoperability that the infrared links caused - problems such as different driver software in handsets. Developments in mobile communications are reaching a peak with the advent of Third generation (3G) systems. But it has not always been a smooth ride, and the road ahead brings into view technological and standardization issues that still need resolving.