NEW YORK — San Francisco’s OmniSky Corp. Tuesday broadened its wireless
horizons en masse with announcements concerning two major standards —
Bluetooth and Wireless Application Protocol, or WAP.
Demonstrating how its products work with handhelds and personal digital
assistants (PDAs) at TECHXNY, the wireless applications provider
demonstrated how its service may be used over the CDMA wireless network
using a Bluetooth-supportive Motorola Timeport 270c mobile phone to provide
connectivity to a Palm Vx equipped with an OmniSky Bluetooth adapter. The
firm also showed audiences how the same services may be tapped via a Sanyo
SCP-5000 mobile phone, using WAP technology, and on the
Casio E-125 Pocket PC.
For those with an inclination toward wireless laptop connectivity, OmniSky
unveiled a solution for Hewlett-Packard Co.’s Pavilion notebook PC.
OmniSky’s solution aims to increases speeds for the Web through caching and
compression algorithms that reduce unnecessary data transmissions over
wireless networks. And lastly, OmniSky vowed to work with wireless
specialist Ericsson to deliver its wireless e-mail and Net service via
Ericsson’s Bluetooth and GPRS mobile phones. Ericsson and OmniSky plan to
co-operate to ensure interoperability between their Bluetooth and GPRS
products and services, and will co-market solutions to mobile network
operators and distributors in the U.S. and Europe.
“We currently offer the service for the key Palm OS and Pocket PC devices,
and we’re quickly moving toward support for laptops and mobile phones,”
Patrick McVeigh, OmniSky’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Our
network support has expanded beyond CDPD as we show the capability to
support GPRS/GSM and CDMA.”
Specifically, OmniSky showed how its wireless e-mail and Internet service
may be accessed on a Palm Vx equipped with an OmniSky Bluetooth adapter,
with connectivity provided by a Bluetooth-enabled Motorola Timeport 270c
handset. Not wanting to leave WAP hanging, the outfit also demoed the same
service on the Sanyo SCP-5000 WAP mobile phone. As of Tuesday, OmniSky said
it has joined the WAP Forum to improve its offerings for the standard.
OmniSky’s WAP demo shows how users can access Web content on the Sanyo
SCP-5000 mobile phone over the CDMA network. The OmniSky demonstration
service on the Sanyo mobile phone allows users to access Web content, and
OmniSky’s Os Cities and Os People applications, which make it easy to engage
in real-time collaboration with friends and colleagues.
OmniSky competes with AvantGo Inc. and Novatel Wireless Inc. in the wireless
applications sector.
