USA: In anticipation of the expected explosion in the variety and volumes of products incorporating embedded 3GPP wireless modules, the Global Certification Forum (GCF) has launched a streamlined certification process for new categories of connected device. The new scheme can be employed by GCF Manufacturer Members to certify qualifying devices.
Wireless connectivity based on 3GPP modules is spreading rapidly from pioneering products such as laptops and netbooks to smart meters, automotive and health applications, as well as an increasingly wide variety of enterprise and consumer electronic devices.
For manufacturers of such devices, 3GPP connectivity extends the functionality and enhances the appeal and value of their products. While recognising the incremental revenue potential, mobile operators need to be assured that any new device will not adversely impact their networks and the service offered to other customers, or interfere with other devices. With its standardised “test once, use anywhere” ethos, GCF Certification can reduce acceptance testing overheads for manufacturers and operators alike.
GCF has now launched a streamlined certification process for products which incorporate a GCF-certified embedded 3GPP wireless module - but where wireless communications is not fundamental to the primary function of the device.
By explicitly linking the certification of a device to the certification of its embedded module, GCF has been able to reduce the number and scope of tests that need to be applied to the device. Testing of devices that are eligible for this new scheme will now focus on functionality such as antenna, SIM contacts and user-interface that are specifically provided by the device rather than its embedded module.
To reflect the anticipated life-cycles of many of these new device categories, the streamlined GCF process extends the validity of the module certification from the usual six months to three years. The scheme accommodates manufacturers who wish to source multiple 3GPP modules as long as each device/module pair is individually certified.
In devices such as handsets, USB modems, datacards and 3GPP wireless modules – where 3GPP communication is the primary function of a device – GCF’s proven certification process remains unchanged.
All devices are subjected to a mix of conformance tests undertaken in an ISO17025-accredited lab, interoperability tests and field trials in multiple networks. The applicable tests are determined by the type and 3GPP functionality of the device.
GCF is now actively reaching-out to industry groups across sectors such as metering, medical, automotive and payments to promote the streamlined scheme and its role in the development of new markets.
”Throughout this review of our procedures, GCF members have focused on delivering a straightforward, pragmatic yet rigorous scheme that avoids complicated rules, requirements and definitions,” said Adriana Nugter, GCF Operations Manager. “Our streamlined procedures ensure that GCF is equipped for the new era of diverse connected devices.”
Established in 1999, GCF has a total membership of more than 200, including many of the world’s most influential telecommunications companies from the operator, device manufacturer and test industry communities.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Millennial Net intros MeshScape 5 for battery-powered OEM-embedded apps
CHELMSFORD, USA: Millennial Net, the leader in dynamic wireless mesh technology, has announced MeshScape 5, a new version of its patented technology specifically configured for OEM-embedded applications.
MeshScape 5 includes a rich set of APIs (application programming interfaces) for rapid integration with sophisticated applications.
MeshScape 5 is a high-performance wireless mesh sensor networking (WSN) technology, which implements Millennial's unique Decentralized Distributed Dynamic Routing (D3R) technology. It is ideal for demanding dynamic, ad-hoc and mobile applications requiring bi-directional communications. Inherent in any wireless networking system are the tradeoffs of power, scale, speed, latency and upstream/downstream directional bias.
Most WSNs available today, both proprietary and standards-based (such as Zigbee PRO and WirelessHart), achieve lesser or skewed performance levels across these many opposing design objectives, which limit their suitability for many applications. MeshScape is optimized to achieve much greater performance and reliability levels in more demanding applications.
"The potential range of WSN applications expands as performance increases," says Sokwoo Rhee, Millennial Net founder and CTO. "But performance has not been the focus of many WSN technology and standard developments to date. Today, we see market leading organizations in various application areas coming forward who value and seek high performance as a critical foundation upon which to address and exploit new opportunities. MeshScape 5 provides these companies a solid foundation of mature and proven technology, with the flexibility to adapt to application-driven requirements across many dimensions."
MeshScape 5 includes a rich set of APIs (application programming interfaces) for rapid integration with sophisticated applications.
MeshScape 5 is a high-performance wireless mesh sensor networking (WSN) technology, which implements Millennial's unique Decentralized Distributed Dynamic Routing (D3R) technology. It is ideal for demanding dynamic, ad-hoc and mobile applications requiring bi-directional communications. Inherent in any wireless networking system are the tradeoffs of power, scale, speed, latency and upstream/downstream directional bias.
Most WSNs available today, both proprietary and standards-based (such as Zigbee PRO and WirelessHart), achieve lesser or skewed performance levels across these many opposing design objectives, which limit their suitability for many applications. MeshScape is optimized to achieve much greater performance and reliability levels in more demanding applications.
"The potential range of WSN applications expands as performance increases," says Sokwoo Rhee, Millennial Net founder and CTO. "But performance has not been the focus of many WSN technology and standard developments to date. Today, we see market leading organizations in various application areas coming forward who value and seek high performance as a critical foundation upon which to address and exploit new opportunities. MeshScape 5 provides these companies a solid foundation of mature and proven technology, with the flexibility to adapt to application-driven requirements across many dimensions."
Rumoured Microsoft acquisition of Adobe driven by apps market
Richard Edwards, Ovum principal analyst.
AUSTRALIA: Microsoft and Adobe have been around for a very long time and their software products can be found on just about every PC, but of late these vendors have been relegated to the chorus line with Google and Apple now occupying centre stage.
The last 20 years has seen the PC -- with Microsoft Windows in particular -- dominating innovation in the world of IT, but this has already started to change. Despite Microsoft's best efforts with Windows 7, Apple iOS and Google Android are now the new platforms for innovation, with the mobile phone replacing the PC as the must have tool for information workers.
The mobile "apps" business is now the place to be for software development companies, and Microsoft and Adobe have yet to make any real or significant impact in this market. If the two companies were to merge then it would have to be the mobile apps market driving the deal, as this is where both companies need to score big time.
There has always been a strong sense of "co-opertition" between Microsoft and Adobe, with both companies vying for the hearts and minds of creative software developers and office workers. It would certainly strengthen Microsoft's position in the "prosumer" market if the company were to acquire Adobe, and the enterprise market would benefit too if Adobe LiveCycle (the company's back-end business integration platform) became fully integrated with Microsoft SharePoint.
AUSTRALIA: Microsoft and Adobe have been around for a very long time and their software products can be found on just about every PC, but of late these vendors have been relegated to the chorus line with Google and Apple now occupying centre stage.
The last 20 years has seen the PC -- with Microsoft Windows in particular -- dominating innovation in the world of IT, but this has already started to change. Despite Microsoft's best efforts with Windows 7, Apple iOS and Google Android are now the new platforms for innovation, with the mobile phone replacing the PC as the must have tool for information workers.
The mobile "apps" business is now the place to be for software development companies, and Microsoft and Adobe have yet to make any real or significant impact in this market. If the two companies were to merge then it would have to be the mobile apps market driving the deal, as this is where both companies need to score big time.
There has always been a strong sense of "co-opertition" between Microsoft and Adobe, with both companies vying for the hearts and minds of creative software developers and office workers. It would certainly strengthen Microsoft's position in the "prosumer" market if the company were to acquire Adobe, and the enterprise market would benefit too if Adobe LiveCycle (the company's back-end business integration platform) became fully integrated with Microsoft SharePoint.
Highest performance and scalability preventing revenue leakage
PADERBORN, GERMANY: Products from Orga Systems and Tieto fit perfectly together in mission critical systems, such as real-time charging and billing, where stability and reliability are extremely important.
SS7 stacks over both E1/T1 and SIGTRAN carriers provided by Tieto are used in Orga Systems' Messaging Systems and SCP (Service Control Point) for advanced IN (Intelligent Network) services. This enables real-time call control and online charging at the highest level of performance while eliminating fraud and minimizing integration efforts.
Real-time service control and advanced IN functionalities are important core capabilities for telecom operators who want to manage and extend their business success in the prepaid and convergent market place. In order to prevent revenue leakage and enable future growth, these IN real-time capabilities must provide highest performance and scalability.
SCP services and Tieto's SS7 boards are a peak time proven combination with excellent performance, high traffic can be realized in cooperation on real-time call control and high performance messaging.
Orga Systems and Tieto have been partners for more than eight years. Today, Tieto Signaling is an integrated component of a well established Orga Systems' portfolio product deployed in many installations.
Orga Systems' SCP solution is pre-integrated with Orga Systems' awarded Real-time Billing Solution OPSC Gold. The SCP supports all prepaid call types as well as roaming services.
SS7 stacks over both E1/T1 and SIGTRAN carriers provided by Tieto are used in Orga Systems' Messaging Systems and SCP (Service Control Point) for advanced IN (Intelligent Network) services. This enables real-time call control and online charging at the highest level of performance while eliminating fraud and minimizing integration efforts.
Real-time service control and advanced IN functionalities are important core capabilities for telecom operators who want to manage and extend their business success in the prepaid and convergent market place. In order to prevent revenue leakage and enable future growth, these IN real-time capabilities must provide highest performance and scalability.
SCP services and Tieto's SS7 boards are a peak time proven combination with excellent performance, high traffic can be realized in cooperation on real-time call control and high performance messaging.
Orga Systems and Tieto have been partners for more than eight years. Today, Tieto Signaling is an integrated component of a well established Orga Systems' portfolio product deployed in many installations.
Orga Systems' SCP solution is pre-integrated with Orga Systems' awarded Real-time Billing Solution OPSC Gold. The SCP supports all prepaid call types as well as roaming services.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Multinationals need to take more responsibility for managing mobile costs and services
LONDON, UK: In a new report, Ovim, the independent telecoms analyst claims that multinationals (MNCs) are struggling to manage the ever growing cost and complexity of business mobility and many have little idea how much they are spending globally.
However, Ovum has found that while most are quick to lay the blame on the mobile operators, they could do much more themselves to bring the situation under control.
Pauline Trotter, Ovum analyst and author of the report, said: “The major mobile service providers have invested in improvements over the past two years to support MNCs in tackling the issue of international mobility. In particular, they have improved areas such as expense management, device management and help desk support.”
However, our research shows that MNCs continue to be unimpressed by their offerings. “We think this judgment is harsh as, while managed mobility services are still immature, MNCs need to take responsibility for some of the problems themselves,” adds Trotter based in London.
“While on the whole they feel that the service provided in individual countries is satisfactory, on a global scale, they do not feel providers are meeting their needs. They want to see a global managed services approach for mobile similar to those they have already for fixed services.
This situation is even more critical in Asia-Pacific where MNC users are highly mobile, but the enterprise mobile service offers from service providers are underwhelming. Most solutions are restricted to remote access services, on-premise mobility support for users travelling between MNC sites and general roaming offers.
There is a lack of managed mobility offerings on a pan-Asia Pacific scale, and where support is provided it is only available for customers with a very high number of mobile users.
But user demands for global managed mobility may be unrealistic, given the structure of the mobile industry, as managed mobility providers can only provide global (or even pan-regional) offers through strong partnerships and these will take time to build.
Many multinationals have a continued fragmented approach to procurement, however, and this is a major barrier to a more efficient approach. Until they take a more holistic approach then their service providers will only ever be able to provide a partial solution, no matter how much they invest in improvements to their services.”
The report makes several recommendations for service providers to help them build their relationships with MNCs, including continuing to help multinationals with cost management and providing more support in mobile device management.
However, Ovum has found that while most are quick to lay the blame on the mobile operators, they could do much more themselves to bring the situation under control.
Pauline Trotter, Ovum analyst and author of the report, said: “The major mobile service providers have invested in improvements over the past two years to support MNCs in tackling the issue of international mobility. In particular, they have improved areas such as expense management, device management and help desk support.”
However, our research shows that MNCs continue to be unimpressed by their offerings. “We think this judgment is harsh as, while managed mobility services are still immature, MNCs need to take responsibility for some of the problems themselves,” adds Trotter based in London.
“While on the whole they feel that the service provided in individual countries is satisfactory, on a global scale, they do not feel providers are meeting their needs. They want to see a global managed services approach for mobile similar to those they have already for fixed services.
This situation is even more critical in Asia-Pacific where MNC users are highly mobile, but the enterprise mobile service offers from service providers are underwhelming. Most solutions are restricted to remote access services, on-premise mobility support for users travelling between MNC sites and general roaming offers.
There is a lack of managed mobility offerings on a pan-Asia Pacific scale, and where support is provided it is only available for customers with a very high number of mobile users.
But user demands for global managed mobility may be unrealistic, given the structure of the mobile industry, as managed mobility providers can only provide global (or even pan-regional) offers through strong partnerships and these will take time to build.
Many multinationals have a continued fragmented approach to procurement, however, and this is a major barrier to a more efficient approach. Until they take a more holistic approach then their service providers will only ever be able to provide a partial solution, no matter how much they invest in improvements to their services.”
The report makes several recommendations for service providers to help them build their relationships with MNCs, including continuing to help multinationals with cost management and providing more support in mobile device management.
Ubuntu v10.10 focuses on consumers and mobile
NEW DELHI, INDIA: Canonical announced the availability of Ubuntu 10.10 for download from www.ubuntu.com.
Focused on home and mobile computing users, Ubuntu 10.10 introduces an array of online and offline applications to users of Ubuntu Desktop Edition with a particular focus on the personal cloud. Ubuntu Netbook Edition users will experience an all-new desktop interface called ‘Unity’ -- specifically tuned for smaller screens and computing on the move.
Ubuntu One, the personal cloud service for Ubuntu users, includes new services and expanded features, significant performance enhancements and interoperability with other operating systems including Google’s Android, Apple’s iPhone and Microsoft Windows.
The Ubuntu Software Centre, which gives users instant access to thousands of applications, games and tools, now includes the ability to purchase commercial applications, providing a unified portal for both free and commercial software. The Ubuntu community is putting renewed focus on attracting application developers and software publishers to make their work available to Ubuntu users. The universe of applications, both free and commercial, certified on Ubuntu continues to grow.
“Ubuntu 10.10 for desktops and netbooks is our most consumer-friendly release yet,” said Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. “Ubuntu One’s personal cloud services will put Ubuntu at the heart of many users’ computing worlds even when they need or prefer to use other platforms. Unity has the opportunity to change how we think about our use of computers and the Software Centre will bridge Ubuntu with the applications users need to switch to the world’s best OS.”
"Ubuntu is our preferred operating system" said Vakul Bhatnagar COO, eSys Information Technologies Pvt Ltd. "We are already offering Ubuntu pre-installed on our Wizard Range of Desktops and plan to expand further by offering Ubuntu 10.10 on our Netbooks, and Servers."
Ubuntu One Basic, available free of charge, provides a personal cloud for sharing and syncing files, contacts, bookmarks and notes, with 2GB of free storage, access to music from the integrated store and (new in 10.10) a beta client for Windows allowing you to integrate your Windows and Ubuntu worlds.
As part of the paid Ubuntu One Mobile service, applications are now available for Android and iPhone so users can stream their music collections from their personal cloud to their mobile devices and synchronize contacts. Users might find that they need extra capacity so 20GB blocks of additional storage can be purchased on demand.
Unity is a new interface for Ubuntu that is making its debut in Ubuntu 10.10 Netbook Edition. It is designed for highly mobile computing, making the most of precious screen space on mobile devices. The Unity interface also supports touch and gestures for the increasing number of devices that will support it, with larger icons and a more touch-intuitive interface.
Focused on home and mobile computing users, Ubuntu 10.10 introduces an array of online and offline applications to users of Ubuntu Desktop Edition with a particular focus on the personal cloud. Ubuntu Netbook Edition users will experience an all-new desktop interface called ‘Unity’ -- specifically tuned for smaller screens and computing on the move.
Ubuntu One, the personal cloud service for Ubuntu users, includes new services and expanded features, significant performance enhancements and interoperability with other operating systems including Google’s Android, Apple’s iPhone and Microsoft Windows.
The Ubuntu Software Centre, which gives users instant access to thousands of applications, games and tools, now includes the ability to purchase commercial applications, providing a unified portal for both free and commercial software. The Ubuntu community is putting renewed focus on attracting application developers and software publishers to make their work available to Ubuntu users. The universe of applications, both free and commercial, certified on Ubuntu continues to grow.
“Ubuntu 10.10 for desktops and netbooks is our most consumer-friendly release yet,” said Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. “Ubuntu One’s personal cloud services will put Ubuntu at the heart of many users’ computing worlds even when they need or prefer to use other platforms. Unity has the opportunity to change how we think about our use of computers and the Software Centre will bridge Ubuntu with the applications users need to switch to the world’s best OS.”
"Ubuntu is our preferred operating system" said Vakul Bhatnagar COO, eSys Information Technologies Pvt Ltd. "We are already offering Ubuntu pre-installed on our Wizard Range of Desktops and plan to expand further by offering Ubuntu 10.10 on our Netbooks, and Servers."
Ubuntu One Basic, available free of charge, provides a personal cloud for sharing and syncing files, contacts, bookmarks and notes, with 2GB of free storage, access to music from the integrated store and (new in 10.10) a beta client for Windows allowing you to integrate your Windows and Ubuntu worlds.
As part of the paid Ubuntu One Mobile service, applications are now available for Android and iPhone so users can stream their music collections from their personal cloud to their mobile devices and synchronize contacts. Users might find that they need extra capacity so 20GB blocks of additional storage can be purchased on demand.
Unity is a new interface for Ubuntu that is making its debut in Ubuntu 10.10 Netbook Edition. It is designed for highly mobile computing, making the most of precious screen space on mobile devices. The Unity interface also supports touch and gestures for the increasing number of devices that will support it, with larger icons and a more touch-intuitive interface.
Spice Mobile revolutionizes communication and entertainment sector with SAP
MUMBAI, INDIA: Spice Mobility Limited (erstwhile Spice Mobile), India’s leading and innovative mobile devices company, credited with many firsts including launching the first dual mode phone in the country, is in an aggressive growth phase and is collaborating with SAP AG. SAP software will provide Spice Mobility with quick and easy visibility into its operations across the enterprise.
With increased market focus and growth prospects, Spice Mobility needed robust IT offerings that could align with its business strategies and strengthen its global positioning.
SAP, along with implementation partner IBM, proved to be the best fit to complement Spice Mobility’s business requirements, including sales force automation, region-based forecasting, purchase process, inventory tracking and automated billing. The project integrates the entire sales force automation, does sales tracking and sales forecast across regions, and provides a single dashboard view from system to the management.
This swift and timely implementation will help Spice Mobility Limited to not only continue translating its brand vision of ‘To be one step ahead of the dreams of the mobile society’ in both letter and spirit but also demonstrate its deepening industry expertise and fulfill its commitment to delivering exceptional value to customers and channel partners globally.
With increased market focus and growth prospects, Spice Mobility needed robust IT offerings that could align with its business strategies and strengthen its global positioning.
SAP, along with implementation partner IBM, proved to be the best fit to complement Spice Mobility’s business requirements, including sales force automation, region-based forecasting, purchase process, inventory tracking and automated billing. The project integrates the entire sales force automation, does sales tracking and sales forecast across regions, and provides a single dashboard view from system to the management.
This swift and timely implementation will help Spice Mobility Limited to not only continue translating its brand vision of ‘To be one step ahead of the dreams of the mobile society’ in both letter and spirit but also demonstrate its deepening industry expertise and fulfill its commitment to delivering exceptional value to customers and channel partners globally.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
