REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—U.K. carrier O2 plc and Openwave Systems Inc. announced an initiative that calls for the companies to build a simplified mobile messaging service based on Openwave’s core messaging platform and client software products.
The companies said they initially plan to develop a prototype messaging user experience that incorporates elements of mobile instant messaging, short message service and multimedia message service with presence information.
“When it comes to the development of mobile messaging services, the industry has been responsible for ignoring the simple things like usability and simplicity, the very things at the center of a fantastic customer experience,” said Dave Williams, O2’s group chief technology officer. “Operators, device vendors and platform vendors have tended to focus on a fragmented, non-integrated approach to the delivery of new IP-based messaging services. This approach is not sustainable in the long term for the network architecture or the user experience.”
Openwave will provide back-end messaging infrastructure and handset software components for the service, and will host the trial solution, said the companies.
In other Openwave news, the company reported a profit for its fiscal third quarter ended March 31.
Net income for the quarter was $9.6 million, a reversal of a $2.5 million net loss the company reported during the same period last year and an increase from net income of $8.4 million during the previous quarter.
Revenues for the quarter were $113 million, up 6 percent from revenues of $106.3 million during the same quarter last year and up 8 percent from revenues of $104.5 million during the previous quarter. Revenues were in line with analyst expectations of $112.23 million for the quarter.
The company’s stock dropped more than 8 percent after the news, falling to around $18.84 per share.
