Nokia, Compaq to deliver mobile Internet solutions for the enterprise

Like scavengers sensing a great feed, companies of various ilk are racing to find the solutions to attract the enterprise market—in many cases, sharing resources to improve time to market. As such, the industry is seeing a plethora of joint ventures and alliances dealing with the mobile Internet. As well as the Ericsson-Microsoft venture, Nokia has struck a deal with Compaq Computer Corp., and the two have formed a global alliance to develop and market mobile Internet and Intranet solutions to enterprise customers. The two companies will integrate their respective products, the Nokia WAP Server software and the Compaq ProLiant server running Windows NT.

Compaq and Nokia are jointly developing worldwide marketing and distribution plans in support of this alliance. Both companies will also invest funds in support of the joint marketing plan. The combined solution will enable enterprise customers to provide their employees with mobile Internet solutions that feature enhanced productivity functionality such as business-class e-mail and contact information, customer relationship management (CRM) tools, order/shipment status, and e-mail telephony links. The solution also delivers improved end-to-end security and manageability.

The new offering will be initially introduced to customers in North America followed by Europe and the rest of the world.

"Wireless and the Internet are the great trends of our day, and their convergence is reshaping the way we live and work," said Mary McDowell, vice president and general manager, Compaq Industry Standard Server Group. "Today, Nokia and Compaq are joined together right at the intersection of those powerful trends. Nokia is a recognized leader in mobility, and this ProLiant-based enterprise solution complements Compaq's extensive telecommunications expertise in wireless networks, including mobility management solutions that support more than 50 million wireless subscribers worldwide."

Application
Landstar System Inc. (Jacksonville, FL) manages a network of 7,100 independent trucking operators, providing them with load planning information (cargo type and size, pick-up location, delivery destination). With this information in real time, the small business owners can select, "on the fly," the freight opportunities that best meet their needs.

Working with Nokia, Compaq, and independent software vendor PhoneOnline.com, Landstar is able to improve its services to its small business partners by providing the same load information through an Internet-based portal the truck operators access with WAP-enabled handsets rather than struggling with wireline telephones or laptop computers while on the road. In recent trials, truck operators expressed strong support for the wireless Internet solution, citing much greater flexibility and ease of use—and ultimately, more profitable use of their time and their rolling assets.

Edited by Ellen Jensen
Managing Editor, Wireless Networks Online