View a PDF version of this article (25KB)

The real mobile web age is upon us. Yes, it has been promised before  - with WAP and browser-enabled PDAs - but it didn’t really happen. It was too slow and only offered restricted access to websites.

But the UK launch of i-mode (the world’s most widely used mobile data service – available from O2 in October 2005), the continued growth in 3G signups and the ubiquity of pay-per-use wireless hotspots makes web on the move a reality. This will soon be reinforced by mobile network operators encouraging uptake with convincing offers and promotions in the knowledge that their revenue will increasingly come from data downloads such as music, internet services and video.

So how easily can businesses extend their web environments into the mobile arena? In theory the universal use of style-sheets will help; it’s a question of swapping one presentation file for another. In practice, copy will need to be edited and images re-cut. But the really expensive stuff – the back end systems – can be accessed on a mobile in exactly the same way as they can on fixed web.

And what about mobility for employees? IT departments have finally started to think about mobility as an integral part of their infrastructure, and not as an expensive and unproven emerging technology. That said, mobile services will be distributed wisely by companies – after all, wireless messaging for all employees is expensive and the constant interruption from a Blackberry can have a detrimental effect on concentration and productivity.

As companies focus on delivering their digital services into the mobile environment and more and more users take it for granted, you’ll see best practice standards on usability start to emerge. But we’ve all learnt our lessons during the desktop web revolution, haven’t we? It should be easy this time around...

View a PDF version of this article (25KB)

 

Our Views