The Wireless Application Protocol made strides in Sweden, Germany and Finland last week, adding to its gaining momentum in Europe.
In Germany, Nokia Corp. and Deutsche Bank have agreed to develop new mobile banking services based on the WAP that will allow users to conduct online banking activities from wireless handsets. Nokia said it will provide its Nokia WAP Server and 7110 WAP-enabled media phone to the effort.
Also, Phone.com Inc. announced its UP.Link server suite will play a key role in Mannesmann Mobilfunk’s WAP platform, which the German carrier contracted Siemens to install. Siemens said it will integrate the UP.Link server suite in Mobilfunk’s Global System for Mobile communications network so it may offer what Mobilfunk calls Internet-based information services. Mobilfunk is the largest cellular operator in Germany and the first to demo Nokia’s 7110 media phone, equipped with Phone.com’s WAP-compatible UP.Browser. The agreement expands Phone.com’s footprint in Europe to 14 GSM carriers.
Concurrent Data Dynamics of Uttran, Sweden, launched an Internet portal based on WAP. The software company’s Allt.com search engine uses its own proprietary software as well. Another Swedish company, InfoCreator AB, said it developed Java-based software that makes it easy to edit, publish and transmit WAP-based content.
Finnish carrier Sonera Ltd. said it is ready to start providing WAP services immediately. The company said the services will be based mainly on the messi.net Internet service it launched in June. Sonera acquired its WAP gateway from Apion Ltd.
In other WAP news, Phone.com said Shinsegi Telecom licensed its WAP-compatible UP.Link Gateway and Enhanced Services Platform to provide wireless Internet services in Korea.
Nokia said it signed a global cooperation agreement with Reuters news service to develop and deliver financial, sports and general news services using WAP technology. Reuters’ news services were developed to work with the Nokia Artus Messaging Platform and optimized for the Nokia 7110 WAP-based media phone, supporting the WAP 1.1 specification.
