Ericsson and EC-Gate have agreed to co-develop wireless applications for the new General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) wireless network. Following on the first generation of wireless procurement applications created for the Dutch construction industry in EC-Bouw, EC-Gate and Ericsson will work together to speed the deployment of these new broadband wireless applications in EC-Gate's digital marketplaces throughout Europe and North America.
GPRS networks can send data at speeds of up to 115 kilobytes per second (kbps), compared to the 9.6 kbps typical of current wireless networks, allowing end-users always-on, always-connected broadband Internet access.
"The GPRS portals we are developing with Ericsson will mark a watershed in wireless data communications--this will really open up the tap," said Ivan Zasarsky, President and Chief Technology Officer of EC-Gate. "The speed and enhanced applications available through GPRS will make it the new global standard for wireless and will further drive the growth of the wireless Internet, especially in the B2B space. This broadband solution will deliver our customers' business information--financial data, sales force and delivery or scheduling information--far more quickly than the existing wireless networks."
GPRS is seen as a transitional step before the true quantum leap in wireless speed to be provided by the so-called third generation networks, which will not start operating in Europe before 2002. GPRS is a standardized packet-switched data service for Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) networks, allowing data rates of up to 115 kbps. EC-Gate recently became a member of the GPRS Forum and will shortly begin working with Ericsson's Mobile Applications Initiative (MAI) for GPRS certification.
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