Eden Prairie, Minn.’s IntraNet Solutions Inc. made some
mobile waves Wednesday when it agreed to license its content viewing technology
to Mobile Computing Technologies (MCT), a Japan-based wireless technology
and consulting company.
Terms of the licensing agreement were not disclosed, but the maker of
Xpedio, a popular content management system, will provide its Outside In
Viewer Technology (OIVT) for the Java-based Tao operating system, which is
the main engine for digital appliances in mobile networks.
The firms hope that with OIVT embedded in the operating system, Tao users
will be able to view, print, copy and paste documents in more than 100 file
formats without launching the documents’ native applications. IntraNet
Solutions and MCT will jointly market the combined solution, with MCT
serving as the exclusive distributor in Japan. MCT will also work directly
with wireless manufacturers to integrate the solution into their devices and
applications.
Improving viewer functionality on wireless devices, be they personal digital
assistants (PDAs) or Web-enabled phones, has long been an endeavor that many
makers of mobile computing solutions have worked on because the screens are
often tiny and become easily cramped. With screens that are so small, it is
important that consumers feel comfortable accessing information in an easy
fashion. INRS and MCT believe they can make it work in Japan.
“We have no doubt that the wireless device manufacturers will quickly and
widely embrace the file viewing functionality IntraNet Solutions’ Outside In
Viewer Technology provides,” said Hiroaki Yokoyama, senior director for
Mobile Computing Technologies. “The wide range of formats the product
supports, as well as its ease-of-use, will drive the rapid adoption of this
technology.”
OIVT has also been ported to work on Microsoft Windows CE and Symbian
platforms, in more than 70 file formats on mobile and wireless devices.