Two top mobile solution firms partnered Thursday as Sprint PCS and Palm Inc.
agreed to market and sell wireless solutions for handhelds using a
co-branded version of the MyPalm portal, which went live last week.
Terms of the play were not made public.
The deal pairs the ubiquitous voice and data wireless network of Sprint PCS
with the ace handheld maker Palm to provide
the first CDMA solution for handhelds yielding real-time information. Short
for Code-Division Multiple Access, CDMA is a digital cellular technology
that uses spread-spectrum techniques.
Services for users will include Palm wireless PIM services, e-mail,
e-commerce purchase options, as well as access to individually-tailored
information on movie listings and sports schedules. These solutions should
help traveling employees better manage both work and play while out of the
office.
The deal also extends Sprint PCS’s rich wireless content to Palm OS
smartphones.
For Sprint, joining with Palm effectively bolsters its leadership in the
wireless data arena while Palm benefits from hooking up with a top mobile
service and content provider.
Furthermore, Sprint PCS and Palm will work together to help developers in
the Palm OS development community and participants in the Sprint PCS
Application Developer’s Program build CDMA wireless solutions.
Initial solutions for the Palm series handhelds will be available in the
form of a co-branded connectivity solution that will allow customers to
connect their Palm handhelds to a Sprint PCS Internet-enabled phone.
Scheduled to be consumer-ready via Sprint PCS and online at The Palm Store in early 2001, the kit will
include a data cable, a Palm handheld adapter, a CD-ROM and a user’s guide.
Also, applications and hardware devices that run the Sprint PCS wireless
network will be introduced throughout 2001, providing added functionality
for Palm handheld users.
