Qualcomm Develops New Cellular Platform
S A N D I E G O, Feb. 1 -- A new software platform developed by wireless technology firm Qualcomm Inc. will make it easier to add complex games, music and other applications to mobile phones, the company said Wednesday.
The new platform will allow software developers to createstandard programs for downloading applications that work in phonesand other wireless devices from a variety of manufacturers, companyofficials said.
Several manufacturers and wireless carriers have signedagreements to begin using the new technology and Qualcomm expectsphones built with the technology will start to be available to thepublic by the fall, said company spokeswoman Christine Trimble.
Other companies, including Motorola, are also developing commonoperating systems that will make it easier to add more applicationsto phones and handheld wireless devices.
But it remains in question whether ordinary consumers will bewilling to convert their easy-to-use cell phones into personalcomputing devices with many applications, said Craig Mathias, anindustry analyst with Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass.
“It’s certainly not going to be something that everyone isgoing to want to take advantage of,” Mathias said. “It creates alevel of complexity that some people won’t want.”
New BREW
Carriers that have agreed to use Qualcomm’s technology includeVerizon Wireless and Leap in the United States, Korea TelecomFreetel and Pegaso in Mexico. The manufactures include Samsung andKyocera Wireless Corp., Trimble said.
The platform is known as BREW, for binary runtime environmentfor wireless. Initially, it will be available to phones powered byQualcomm’s patented CDMA chip technology. But the company saideventually it will be available to other systems.
“Until the BREW platform, no widespread, uniform and powerfulplatform existed for wireless devices,” said Paul Jacobs,Qualcomm’s executive vice president.
Wireless carriers benefit from the move because the increasedapplications will encourage people to spend more time on their cellphones, generating more revenue for the companies. Qualcomm’seffort is one of several in the world seeking to make mobiledevices more versatile, including the addition of messaging andInternet capability.
