Lucent Technologies
Lucent Technologies introduced Flexent Wireless IP Core Network Architecture, which it said will help wireless carriers deliver a range of voice and data services to customers. According to Lucent, the first phase of the architecture, the Lucent Softswitch Toll/Tandem Solution, lets carriers connect circuit-based Mobile Switching Centers with IP or asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) backbone networks. Future phases will deliver improved price and performance for packet traffic. The company adds that the new architecture “paves the way to a pure IP network to support all of a mobile operator’s voice and data service needs.” www.lucent.com.
EMS Wireless
EMS Wireless announced SlimGEM, a new line of low-profile cellular antennas. According to the company, the new antenna line is more compact and will help customers get approval from zoning boards for new cell sites quickly. “Our new line of low-profile antennas is the direct result of listening to our customers and developing superior RF solutions to meet their requirement,” said Gerald Hickman, the company’s vice president. “These compact antennas offer better performance compared to our heritage cellular product line, but are 60 percent smaller in size.” EMS also unveiled its new PCS Tower Mounted Amplifier product line, a standalone product or integrated solution, which is available now in the U.S. and parts of South America. For greater integration, EMS can mount the TMA and panel antennas in its AcCELLerator packaging solution, which gives wireless infrastructure providers even greater compact cell sites. www.ems-t.com.
Plantronics Inc.
Plantronics Inc. launched the Plantronics M1000, a Bluetooth wireless headset which utilizes a second-generation chipset that delivers better sound quality, longer talk times and is lighter weight than earlier chipset designs. The M1000 headset delivers wireless, hands-free communications with other Bluetooth products including mobile phones and personal digital assistants. “We know from our research that mobile users have very definite expectations of what a Bluetooth headset should be: it must have superior sound quality, be both comfortable and easy to put on and take off, and it must have style,” said Joyce Shimizu, president of Plantronics mobile communications division. “With the M1000 headset, our team has exceeded these expectations across the board-from the sleek, stylish design, to the user-friendly interface, to the superior sound quality, we have a best-in-class product.” www.plantronics.com.
SignalSoft Corp.
SignalSoft announced BFound, a new location-based service for wireless network operators that allows mobile subscriber to “be found” by friends, family and co-workers while on the go. According to David Hose, president and chief executive officer of SignalSoft, “BFound, our newest product, defines the next important wave of location-based services, where you can be found by the people you choose, at the places and times you want.” BFound has built in “opt-in” privacy features that offer subscribers control over when, how and to whom their location is disclosed. The new product, on which users can view the location of a mobile phone subscriber on a PC via an Internet browser, or on a mobile phone via a WAP-compatible microbrowser or Short Message Service, can be deployed in GSM and ANSI-41 networks. www.signalsoftcorp.com.
BitFlash Inc.
BitFlash Inc., a developer of Internet and wireless graphics software, launched its new software platform, the BitFlash Mobility Suite. The suite consists of the BitFlash Server, the BitFlash Visual Interface System, and the BitFlash Server Software Development Kit. According to the company, the platform features rich graphical content, device independence, bandwidth efficient delivery, and publish once, render everywhere assurance. “The industry does not have to wait for 3G to experience 3G-quality content,” said Frederic Charpentier, the company’s chief technology officer. “Combining BitFlash technology with today’s mobile infrastructure will allow service providers to see an immediate return on investment.” www.bitflash.com.
Sierra Wireless
Sierra Wireless announced two early access software development kits for CDMA and Ricochet products. The new software development kits provide software developers with an application interface that will allow users to integrate mobile data applications with Sierra Wireless modems. With the kit, users can integrate various wireless indicators, like signal strength and wireless service provider identification, directly into an application. These products add to the enhanced Sierra Wireless software development kit for Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD). “The enhancements and additions to the Sierra Wireless software development kit is another milestone in providing superior reliability and support to software developers using Sierra Wireless products and services,” said Mark McMillan, vice president of marketing for Sierra Wireless. “Providing the most advanced technology components to software developers allows them to get their products to market faster and to provide complete wireless solutions to their customers.” Developers can access the Sierra Wireless software development kit and support from the Sierra Wireless website. www.sierrawireless.com/ developers.
Double-Time Corp.
Double-Time Corp. presented its new PowerClip 4400 series, which it said “converts wireless phones into portable offices.” The 4400 series consists of three PowerClip models – 4402, 4403 and 4406. Each model equips the Nokia 5100, 6100 and 7100 phone models with various portable office capabilities, including: speakerphones, voice recorders, playback units and self-contained turbo charging units. The PowerClip weighs 3 ounces and can be clipped to a belt, briefcase or purse. (877) 693-7254.
AmikaNow!
AmikaNow! announced the release of its Amika Enterprise Edition Server and the creation of a professional services unit to help mobile professionals effectively manage e-mail overload. The Enterprise Edition Server uses AmikaNow!’s wireless email notification engine and the Amika Highlighter software to provide interpreted and shortened e-mail content on mobile devices. “People who receive 100 e-mails a day are becoming very expensive workers because they’re forced to work an additional four to six hours per day to deal with the email overflow,” said Sue Abu-Hakima, the company’s founder and chief executive officer. “Our current generation Amika Enterprise Edition products can reduce their e-mail burden by at least 20 percent.” Users can couple the solution with any e-mail server and can customize their solution so they only receive important and relevant e-mails. www.amikanow.com.
Superconductor Technologies Inc.
Superconductor Technologies Inc. launched the “HTS-Ready” 850 Series Duplexer, which it said delivers superior duplexing functionality for the 850 MHz cellular band for high power base station transmitters. It provides low transmit and receive insertion loss while providing cross-band isolation. This results in higher sensitivity to wireless customers’ handset signals and more transmit power delivered to the antenna. The company also said it provides optimum filtering performance for both the transmit and receive paths in a duplexed environment, especially when used in conjunction with STI’s HTS SuperFilter Systems. “Recent customer trials of the initial prototype were tremendously successful,” said David Chase vice president of marketing. “In fact, one of the customers with whom we tested has already ordered more than a quarter million dollars of the product.” www.suptech.com.
CSA Wireless
CSA Wireless recently introduced several new antenna products. The “Wayfarer,” a wideband antenna designed to work from 1710 to 2170 MHz, covers PCN, PCS and UMTS frequencies, allowing dual band usage. “Freedom” is the new UMTS band (1920-2170) family of antennas for the global 3G marketplace. “Voyager High Gain” is a n
ew version of CSA Wireless’s Voyager family of cross-pole antennas for the PCS market. The “TRIO” is a low profile PCS antenna designed for difficult zoning environments. It is a 3-sector, cross-polarized antenna in a five-inch diameter tube. The “Remotilt” is a new antenna accessory that allows carriers to adjust the mechanical downtilt of a base transceiver station antenna via a laptop, rather than having to climb the tower. “Unicell” is an antenna mount system designed for the “Voyager” line of PCS cross-pole antennas. It is also intended for difficult zoning environments and allows a tight mounting arrangement, minimizing visual impact. CSA Wireless also developed an optical alignment tool for use with its base station antennas that ensures precise azimuth and elevation settings during installation. www.csawireless.com.
Comsearch
Comsearch has developed an online application filing system that offers auto-entry capabilities and batch filing of the FCC Form 601. The interactive system, designed in cooperation with the FCC, is available for part 101 common carrier microwave, private operational fixed microwave, and part 74 broadcast auxiliary microwave services users. www.comsearch.com.
Wireless Inc.
Wireless Inc. introduced what it said is the world’s first fully outdoor ATM switch, StreamNet 1200. Network service providers can employ the new solution to build wireless mesh networks and deliver voice and data services over ATM to their customers in multi-tenant or multi-dwelling units. StreamNet 1200 supports ATM-25 based networks, and integrates with Wireless Inc.’s Link AX radio, an ATM-25 point-to-point radio carrying 16 Mbps of bi-directional traffic operating in the UNII band. The products can both be mounted outdoors, and do not require a separate enclosure or indoor equipment room space. www.wire-less-inc.com.
Metawave
Metawave introduced the SpotLight 2200 product family, antennas which include two features that increase the number of wireless networks it works with. First, it uses dual-band antenna sharing technology, which allows carriers with both 800 MHz and personal communications system spectrum use a single tower and SpotLight panel antenna to carry both frequencies of traffic. Antenna sharing eliminates tower loading, reduces zoning delays and provides the same capacity benefits of sector synthesis at PCS frequencies. Metawave also is developing capabilities for SpotLight 2200 to integrate with PCS networks so it can eventually work with all significant commercial wireless networks. www.metawave.com.
Sevis Systems Inc.
Sevis Systems Inc. introduced InteleGuard, a signaling firewall that will enable traditional wireless/wireline, third-generation and IP telephony network operators to securely converge voice/data networks, reduce fraud and enforce interconnect agreements using a custom, rules-based policy. InteleGuard will pass, block and/or alert on signaling messages in real-time, depending on the rules established by the user, allowing carriers to make sure traffic on their network is in line with their operations policy. According to the company, InteleGuard will protect networks against hackers, inexperienced carriers and untested equipment; help mitigate interconnect agreements; stop fraud; and provide peace of mind for secure voice and data communication. www.sevis.com.
Centerpost
Centerpost, which offers solutions to electronic communications, announced SmartResponse, a two-way messaging solution that allows users to respond to messages and complete transactions from voice, e-mail and wireless devices. The solution also provides advanced tracking, storage functionality and third-party content integration capabilities. It also provides multi-channel support and easy implementation. According to Centerpost, it can benefit a variety of industries by creating new revenue streams, reducing call center and customer service costs, and increasing customer satisfaction. “Proactively delivering relevant and actionable messages to customers is a clear way for companies to create value,” said Megan Gurley, a Yankee Group analyst. “Centerpost is a forward-thinking company in the proactive messaging arena. By enabling customers to respond to messages and complete transactions from all types of devices, Centerpost is expanding the range of possibilities for customer communications.” www.centerpost.com.
Qpass
Qpass will offer the Qpass TalkWallet, a voice-enabled e-Wallet and transaction service for mobile commerce that will use Nuance’s 7.0 natural language speech recognition engine and Nuance Verifier voice authentication software. According to Qpass, the new services will enable simple, secure and intuitive voice-activated buying via mobile phones. The TalkWallet will store, manage and transfer personal and payment information for use during commerce transactions and deliver that information directly into a merchant’s order processing system so consumers will not need to enter personal or credit card information with each new transaction or merchant. “In today’s highly competitive wireless environment, the ability to just `say it’ and then `buy it’ provides carrier differentiation and consumer satisfaction,” explained Chase Franklin, chairman and chief executive officer of Qpass. “The voice-powered capabilities of Qpass TalkWallet enable wireless carriers and voice portals to increase their transaction revenue, decrease abandonment rates and retain customers on the mobile platform.” www.qpass.com.
UIEvolution Inc.
UIEvolution Inc. introduced a software platform for mobile devices that it said will stream presentation-rich, server based applications over wireless networks. Its first product, the Mobile Instant Game (MIG) Player for Qualcomm’s Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW), allows users to play interactive wireless games instantly, without installing or downloading individual programs. The MIG Player also offers instant response and instant interactivity. “When we launched the BREW initiative, Qualcomm was looking for application developers to take advantage of the wireless environment’s unique characteristics and potential-UIEvolution is doing just that with its mobile instant gaming,” said Peggy Johnson of Qualcomm. www.uievolution.com.
Paradigm Advanced Technologies Inc.
Paradigm Advanced Technologies Inc. launched its Destinator GPS Navigation System, a device that provides up-to-date high-resolution mapping graphics including turn-by-turn voice prompts, which are available in multiple languages. Destinator, which is an iPaq Pocket PC GPS accessory, uses Navigation Technologies Corp.’s map data and points of interest information to provide directions to any destination in North America or Europe. Paradigm said the new product is comparable to permanently fixed in-vehicle navigation systems found in luxury cars, at a fraction of the price. www.powerloc.com.
SnapTrack Inc.
SnapTrack Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Inc., announced commercial availability of its SnapSmart 3.0 location server software and its SnapWARN Wide Area Reference Network global positioning system data feed for North America. Snap-Smart 3.0 and SnapWARN software, which support gpsONE and other hybrid wireless-assisted GPS location system deployments, enable carriers to meet Federal Communications Commission demands and offer several personal location services and e-commerce applications, like personal directions and mobile yellow pages. Deployments of the software are expected to begin in North America and Japan by year-end 2001. www.snaptrack.com.
Amdocs
Amdocs, a provider of customer relationship management, billing and order management solutions, introduced Amdocs Open Application Programming Interfaces at the Amdocs Worldwide User Group conference in Rio de Janeiro. Amdocs Open APIs allow third-party applications to interface with Amdocs’ Ensemble and new 3G software platforms. According to the company, the new software allows operators to leverage Amdocs’ end-to-end solution in a multi-vendor en
vironment. “As operators move toward launching advanced new services, including 3G, the combination of an open architecture and the wide breadth of our solutions allows a truly modular approach,” said Paul Atkinson, senior vice president of marketing at Amdocs. “Amdocs Open APIs help our customers extend and differentiate their services at a pace that suits their specific business model.” www.amdocs.com.
SatisFusion
SatisFusion launched its new eRetentions Platform 2.0, an improved version of its online customer retention platform and product services solution. According to the company, the new version makes it easier for clients to integrate the eRetentions Platform into their Web sites, resulting in a quicker pay-out with minimal investment, more customers, and more revenues. Version 2.0 allows users to track and support the products throughout their lifecycle, from online product registration to second effort sales on accessories and extended support plans. SatisFusion also enhanced its eSupport product. Now, clients can prioritize how repair jobs are referred to the service network based on the clients’ existing relationships. www.satisfusion.com.
Reef
Reef announced the immediate availability of Reef EveryWare, which will enable Web publishers to transform Web content for a range of devices used to access the wireless Web. In addition, the Reef EveryWare Adaptation Engine, built into Reef EveryWare, enables Web content to be adapted to the needs of people with disabilities who require a screen reader to interact with Web sites. According to the company, Reef EveryWare lowers the total cost of running Web sites by offering support for multiple wireless devices without requiring hard-coding the adaptation of the content for each device.” Our new Reef EveryWare Web content transformation software enables non-technical users to build, deploy and sustain an Internet presence that caters to the needs of mobile users and people with disabilities, and, in so doing, extends the reach of their content to totally new classes of customers while reducing associated operating costs. That’s really a huge achievement,” said Philippe Brawerman, Reef’s co-founder and chief executive officer. www.reef.com.
Televigation
Televigation introduced X-Nav, a wireless navigation platform that allows application developers and service providers to develop and launch location-based services quickly and economically. The new service was designed to handle both voice and data media interfaces. X-Nav features application programming interfaces for speech recognition and other data protocols including WAP and short messaging services. The product is available immediately and Televigation has already begun deliveries. www.televigation.com.
iDini Corp.
iDini Corp., which provides application bridging software technology, introduced the enterprise edition of its Mobile Desktop solution. Mobile Desktop allows mobile professionals to use desktop applications and documents via wireless devices. According to iDini, the solution makes wireless computing quick, easy and cost-effective. “Mobile Desktop bridges the gap between the mobile professional’s desktop environment and wireless devices, moving mobile services beyond casual Web browsing and m-commerce to true document processing capabilities,” said Chris Lin, chief executive officer and founder of iDini. www.idini.com.
Digital Mobility Ltd.
Digital Mobility Ltd., a mobile Internet product and services developer, released the first version of its Wireless Application Reader (WAR) WAP browser for Java-enabled phones and personal digital assistants. According to Dr. Janko Mrsic-Flogel, Digital Mobility Ltd.’s technical director, the application acts just like another Java application on the mobile phone. The early version of the WAR WAP browser, which is coded specifically for the J2ME Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP), can be downloaded for an initial period under a restricted license for registered users of www.midletcentral.com. In the future, the company said it expects browsers will be downloaded to phones according to customer needs. “We are already in licensing discussions with a number of leading device manufacturers and carriers,” said Mrsic-Flogel, “and we hope to see the Digital Mobility WAR WAP browser shipping with a range of wireless devices soon.” The full release of the version of the WAR WAP browser will support WMLScript, text and graphics and a browser object layout engine. Digital Mobility also offers a customization service, which allows Java wireless device manufacturers to specify requirements for look and feel and WAP browser functionality. www.digimob.com
Infonxx
Infonxx, a wireless information service provider, launched MobileSource, a new information service that the company said will provide a $5 billion incremental revenue opportunity to wireless carriers in the United States alone. MobileSource is a directory assistance service for wireless phones. According to research done by Infonxx, there is no other directory assistance available via a wireless device, although a survey it conducted said 24 percent of subscribers believed there was. The survey also found that 40 percent of subscribers polled would use a service to access listings and 68 percent said they would list their numbers. “This announcement recognizes the globalization of the world’s economy, the mobility demands of consumers, the goals of wireless carriers to grow revenue with new services and the next step in Infonxx’s strategy of becoming a global information provider for wireless carriers,” said Robert Pines, chief executive officer and co-founder of Infonxx. 888-INFONXX.
Air2Web
Air2Web launched version 2.1 of the Mobile Internet Platform to deliver wireless applications to the global market. This version includes international support for 2-way short message service, i-mode and J-phone wireless standards. The platform allows businesses to create, deploy and deliver enterprise applications like ERP, CRM and Supply Chain Management (SCM) solutions to their customers and employees using any digital wireless service. The new capabilities are available immediately in the United Kingdom. and Spain and will be deployed in the rest of Europe by the middle of this year. Air2Web has also opened European headquarters outside of Amsterdam. www.air2web.com.
Actix Inc.
Actix Inc. unveiled its new Analyzer for cdma2000, which enables third-generation network operators to optimize their CDMA 1x networks prior to commercial launch, thereby reducing the risk of network problems during the launch. The Analyzer provides engineers with a view of network performance and shows the causes of problems and how to resolve them. Also, during network rollouts, it enables carriers to quickly test and verify new network equipment and determine optimal settings. “The smooth, timely introduction of new services is crucial for long-term success, and this is particularly true for complex technologies like 3G. While operators are pushing for early rollouts, they must also take steps to protect the quality of their existing services and to identify and resolve any issues with the new technology before these issues grow into customer problems,” said Des Owens, president of Actix Inc. “Actix’s new analyzer software ensures a smooth 3G rollout for wireless carriers by enabling them to complete tasks such as performance troubleshooting, problem diagnosis and analysis, network comparison for bench-marking and competitive analysis.” www.actix.com.
BulletIN.net
BulletIN.net announced its current and future technologies are compatible with the newly announced Microsoft Outlook Mobile Manager (MOMM). MOMM users can use BulletIN technology for e-mail delivery to wireless devices and for additional capabilities like printing e-mail messages via fax machines, forwarding messages, and requesting additional segments of messages that are too long to be completely displayed. Some features may require a direct connection between BulletIN technol
ogy and the wireless carrier infrastructure, but the company said most will work with any wireless device with an e-mail address. BulletIN has already begun supplying corporations in the U.K. market. www.bulletin.net.
Dataradio
Dataradio announced it introduced its MobilRoam, a suite of software that provides wireless mobile data users with access to multiple networks for ubiquitous coverage. All the elements of Dataradio MobilRoam are provided in an integrated network solution, said the company. The solution is based on radio coverage cost analysis taking into account the best mixture of wireless technologies. www.dataradio.com.
M/A-COM
M/A-COM announced two compact, low-cost integrated circuit power amplifiers for use in GSM and DCS GPRS wireless handsets. The new MAAPSS0004 and MAAPSS0005 radio-frequency power amplifiers, for GSM and DCS bands respectively, meet GPRS specifications and are the first to include all 50W input and output matching in a compact 5 mm by 5mm plastic micro leadframe package, according to the company. M/A-COM also introduced a new dual-band integrated circuit power amplifier for use in high-volume cellular GSM and DCS wireless handsets. The MAAPSS0011 RF power amplifier provides two independent transmit paths in a 4mm by 4mm plastic micro leadframe package. The company also introduced four new products to its portfolio of upconverter and downcoverter ICs. The new products include the MD59-0043 (800 to 900 MHz) and MD59-0049 (1.8 to 2GHz) downcoverters, and the MD59-0062 (1,710 to 1,810 MHz) and MD59-0054 (824 to 849 GHz) upconverters. (800) 366-2266.
Motorola
Motorola Inc. enhanced its R2600 series of service monitors, which includes the R2600D for servicing two-way radios and pagers, the R2625B for servicing ASTRO25 radios, the R2670B and R2660D for testing integrated Digital Enhanced Network subscriber equipment. The R2600 enhancements include a color display that is visible in sunlit field conditions, higher resolution displays and faster screen updates. Flash capability also as been added to allow the R2600 family to accept future software upgrades and enhancements, and the line also includes a high-speed serial port for remote operation. (800) 422-4210.