BT and Microsoft Launch Ambitious Wireless Internet Trial

British Telecom PLC (BT) and Microsoft Corp. have begun an extensive trial of wireless Internet services, involving four corporate customers and business partner Telenor Mobil. The trial aims to assess the market, gather feedback, and prepare for a large-scale commercial deployment expected early next year. The trial will involve approximately 1,000 mobile phone users in the United Kingdom and Norway, evaluating services such as real-time e-mail, calendar access, and online information services.

Key Takeaways:

• The trial involves four corporate customers: British Broadcasting Corp., Credit Suisse First Boston, KPMG LLP, and Nortor Networks.
• The trial will assess the use of Microsoft's operating-system-independent microbrowser in mobile handsets developed by Sagem SA and Samsung Electronics Company Ltd.
• Microsoft's Exchange Server will provide the core of the wireless e-mail and data services, built using Exchange, Windows NT Server, and Internet Information Server (IIS) technology.
• The trial aims to gather detailed feedback on how customers will use emerging mobile data services, which will help BT and Microsoft prepare for a commercial deployment.
• The global mobile data market has a 75 percent compound annual growth rate and is expected to be worth more than $80 billion by 2005.
• BT and Microsoft have signed development agreements with Sagem SA and Samsung Electronics Company Ltd. to integrate Microsoft's microbrowser into mobile handsets.
• The trial has the potential to enable corporate customers to use vital computing and Internet-based business applications while on the move.

Statistics:

• 1,000 mobile phone users will participate in the trial in the United Kingdom and Norway.
• The trial involves four corporate customers: British Broadcasting Corp., Credit Suisse First Boston, KPMG LLP, and Nortel Networks.
• Microsoft's Exchange Server will be used to provide the core of the wireless e-mail and data services.
• The global mobile data market has a 75 percent compound annual growth rate.
• The market is expected to be worth more than $80 billion by 2005.
• BT has a market capitalisation of over £60 billion and serves 27 million exchange lines in the United Kingdom.
• Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers, founded in 1975.

Sources:

• British Telecommunications plc
• Microsoft Corp.
• Sohail Qadri, director of mobility for BT
• Harel Kodesh, vice president of the Productivity Appliance Division at Microsoft
• Knut Oppegaard, director of Value Added Services at Telenor Mobil