SAN FRANCISCO-The Liberty Alliance standard group said it plans to develop specifications that would withhold users’ phone numbers from wireless content providers. The group said its new interface specifications would protect mobile-phone users’ privacy.
“This business represents a large source of income for mobile operators and content providers alike,” said Timo Skytta, vice president of the Liberty Alliance and director of Web services at Nokia Corp. “But, it also represents a huge opportunity for privacy intrusion and increased spam since users are exposing their telephone numbers directly to the content providers, who can then easily give or sell this information to others. The Liberty team recognized an opportunity to create a powerful service interface specification that would protect privacy, enhance the business opportunity for the content providers and deliver additional interoperability and ease of integration features, allowing service providers to team together to provide multiple offerings in a privacy-respecting manner.”
Under the current system, primarily used in Europe, mobile-phone users can buy content like ringtones and pictures by sending text messages to a content vendor’s short code. The content provider then sends the content to the user-a system that reveals the user’s phone number to the content vendor.
Such services are possible in the United States, but most U.S. wireless users purchase content directly from their carriers’ wireless Web sites.
The Liberty Alliance specifications, based on technology from Trustgenix and Vodafone, would mask users’ phone numbers in messaging-based content purchases.
