BARCELONA - July 2, 2003 - Today at TechEd Europe 2003, Microsoft's annual event dedicated to developers and industry professionals, Microsoft Corp. joined industry partners in showcasing new software, hardware and applications for mobile devices, and introduced enhancements to its development platform to extend the functionality of the Microsoft® .NET Compact Framework. Further, the company announced a five-fold increase in the number of application partners who have now completed logo-certification and cataloguing of Windows Mobile(tm)-based applications through the Microsoft Mobile2Market programme. In related news, Microsoft welcomed Telefonica Moviles' announcement of the Windows Mobile-based TSM 400 Pocket PC for mobile professionals, and released results of an EMEA customer survey looking at early corporate trials of Pocket PCs that showed increased business productivity from use of Windows Mobile solutions.
The conference opens on the back of last week's launch of Windows Mobile(tm), Microsoft's new global brand for mobile device software; as well as the newly announced Windows Mobile 2003 software for Pocket PCs, a new version of the software that includes enhanced end-user features and support for developers building Microsoft .NET services and applications. These announcements come at a time of unprecedented momentum for Microsoft's mobile offering, with over 37 hardware manufacturers and 28 mobile operators now committed to delivering Windows Mobile-based devices globally. Additionally, 6,000 mobility partners are now part of the Microsoft Mobile Solutions Partner Programme (MSPP), and over 10,500 applications are now commercially available for Windows Mobile-based devices.
"The progress we're making with our mobile partners in providing great software, developer tools and go-to-market programmes shows a definite advance toward our goal of connecting users to important information, anytime, any place and on any device," said Robbie Wright, Director, Mobile Devices Marketing Group, Microsoft EMEA. "This is the time to rally behind this community to help ignite a marketplace for mobile applications and services."
Windows Mobile Delivers to Developers
Windows Mobile 2003 software for Pocket PCs includes native support for the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework, which extends the programming model of the .NET Framework to bring the power of .NET and Web services to mobile devices. Additionally, a significant amount of work has been performed on Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PCs to provide an even more robust platform for mobile developers. These include:
- Improved OS performance and stability: The new Windows® CE 4.2 operating system adds stability and reliability to the development platform and adds support for two key security protocols, Ipv6 and IPSec/L2TP.
- .NET support: The integration of the .NET Compact Framework in ROM (enabling developers to use Visual C#® .NET or Visual Basic® .NET in Visual Studio® .NET) creates a new development paradigm for mobile application developers, with Pocket PC support in Visual Studio .NET 2003 and XML Web Services support.
- Enhanced native code development environment: Embedded Visual C++® 4.0 with Service Pack 2 allows developers to enhance their native C++ development skills by providing an improved debugging environment and updated compilers.
- Increased extensibility: Includes SMS interception, more controllable Bluetooth functionality, support for WAP over SMS, and a Connection Manager that allows mobile operator clients or enterprise clients to configure settings for GPRS, WAP, CSD and other connectivity settings.
- Improved power management: Gives developers the ability to write applications in unattended mode.
- Improved device configuration: Developers now have access to a rich set of configuration service providers that enable easy provisioning and management of specific device settings via XML. Provisioning can be handled in a number of ways including OTA and WAP Push, CAB file installation, and RAPI configuration via the desktop.
Microsoft today also announced broad European availability of the Software Developer Kit for Windows Mobile-based Smartphones (SDK), which is available for purchase at this year's conference. The Smartphone SDK provides developers worldwide with the resources necessary to develop, test and deploy wireless applications for Smartphones. The kit includes a special pre-commercial Smartphone handset and accessories along with the Microsoft Mobile Development Toolkit CD, containing access to the development tools, technologies and resources that a developer needs to start building Smartphone applications immediately.
In addition to news around developer tools, Microsoft today revealed significant traction behind Mobile2Market, a comprehensive programme designed to assist developers with the logo-certification and market delivery of Windows Mobile-based applications. A recent evaluation of the programme revealed that over 620 applications have now been logo-certified and catalogued through the programme, and that over 40 percent of these are for Windows Mobile-based Smartphones. The Mobile2Market application catalog is also experiencing unprecedented traffic volume, averaging over 100 thousand visits a month. Leading application categories represented in the catalog include Home & Education (34%), business and enterprise (32%), and games and entertainment (20%). For more information on Mobile2Market, please visit: http://www.microsoft.com/mobile/mobile2market/.
Delivering on Enterprise Mobility
Microsoft today also announced results of a survey of partners and customers deploying Windows Mobile device solutions in the enterprise, including customers engaged in Microsoft Mobile Workplace, the programme that brings together Microsoft and leading system integrators to simplify the deployment of mobile business solutions. The survey was based on a sampling of customers who have engaged with Microsoft and its system integrator partners over the last three years in deploying mobile business applications. It revealed that 87 percent of customers using Windows Mobile solutions have experienced measurable productivity and cost benefits; 80 percent of customers continue to actively use Windows Mobile solutions and have extended solutions from pilot trials to actual deployments; 60 percent of customers are using third-party solutions in addition to Microsoft back-end and device technologies; and over 35 percent of customers have deployed new applications or opted to increase the functionality of current device deployments.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software - any time, any place and on any device.
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Microsoft, Windows Mobile, Windows, Visual C#, Visual Basic, Visual Studio and Visual C++ are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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