Sagem Wireless today announced the launch of Cosyphone, said to be a connected lifestyle device aimed at the over 50's market. Cosyphone combines the latest technology such as NFC with a simple yet elegant design and easy-to-navigate user interface to create a connected device which is customised to the specific lifestyle needs of an older generation of mobile phone user.

Cosyphone is designed to be ultra simple and elegant, with an ergonomic form factor and user interface to simplify access to the features users want quickly and easily.  Cosyphone uses contactless NFC technology (near-field communications) to enable users to access the features of the device without scrolling through menus on the handset.  Users can create pre-configured and customised shortcut cards (or "tags") for friends and family, or services such as the doctors or the supermarket, and simply wave their device over the cards to activate the call or text message. Shortcut cards can also be used for data services, for example accessing the latest weather or traffic information on the phone's browser.

With its sleek, attractive form factor, Cosyphone is a stylish device that places a heavy emphasis on simplicity of use and style.  Unlike many mobile devices which require small and nimble fingers to operate, Cosyphone has a large keypad with raised and separated number keys.  Number and text input is simplified by the width of the key surface area, and the key shape is rounded on the top for better tactile awareness. In addition, micro-vibration feedback gives the user assurance they have pressed the right key.

The Cosyphone is stylish. Unlike other phones for this market, the Cosyphone is sleek but easy to hold and operate.  The display is adequately large and the fonts are very legible in various lighting conditions.  The device also comes with an innovative recharger cradle that is also designed for ease of use; the phone slides in easily and does not require any cable attachments.

Thierry Buffenoir, CEO, Sagem Wireless commented: "Everything about the Cosyphone is centred around comfort and simplicity, from the shape, weight and display of the device to the user interface and charger cradle.  We have integrated the latest NFC technology to enable users to customise how they access the features they require from a mobile device.   Despite such a wide variety of devices on the market, with an aging population in Europe there is an opportunity for a simple, effective connected lifestyle device which makes life easier. Cosyphone fills this gap in the market."

Cosyphone will be sold through mobile network operators.

Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) today announced that it has developed the first prototype of a complete security platform for a mobile handset, with Qualcomm's support, and will be displaying its proof-of-concept solution running on Qualcomm's Snapdragon chipsets at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week. The demo will show how the MobiCore secure application environment and the Snapdragon's security architecture delivers a complete ARM TrustZone technology-based security platform to address the requirements of services ranging from mobile payment with secure PIN entry and content management to key management and general user authentication.

The MobiCore environment provides a fully certifiable security solution that enables applications using dedicated security solutions today to be integrated into advanced mobile devices based on Qualcomm's Snapdragon platform.

"MobiCore is of great interest to banks and payment service providers in increasingly leveraging the capabilities of smartphones within the security frameworks of existing payment systems. G&D sees Qualcomm as a key partner to bring this technology to market," explains Dr. Kai Grassie, head of the New Business division at G&D.

"As mobile devices continue to evolve and become more advanced, demand for services such as mobile payment at the point of sale will increase significantly – underscoring the need for exceptional security to protect consumers," said Jason Bremner, vice president of product management, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. "We are pleased to be working with G&D to demonstrate their open security solution on our Snapdragon platform, and look forward to bringing comprehensive security capabilities to market."

Just recently, on February 3, G&D and ARM announced their strategic partnership for the development of highly secure mobile platforms combining the highly-secure MobiCore operating system and ARM TrustZone technology which creates a protected area in advanced systems-on-chip.

The Snapdragon security architecture incorporates ARM TrustZone technology, allowing MobiCore to execute essential security functions in a multitasking environment parallel to a general purpose operating system. Access to such security functions is provided via a common set of APIs, quickly enabling the developer communities to take advantage of such features.

"The first integration of G&D Mobicore and ARM TrustZone technology in a high-performance Qualcomm Snapdragon system-on-chip is an important step forward for mobile security. This commitment demonstrates the importance of security for delivering high value services in future devices", said Ian Drew, executive vice president, Marketing, ARM.

The demonstrations will be on display at G&D and Qualcomm's stands.

Samsung, second only to Nokia in handset sales, has taken the wraps off its first smartphone (‘Wave') based on bada, its own mobile operating system (OS). For the uninitiated, bada is Korean for ocean, so there is a certain logic in using the ‘Wave' moniker (which, presumably, is a lot catchier than the Korean word for wave).

The obvious question (to continue the metaphor) is will the new touch-screen device actually make ‘waves'? While Samsung has been promiscuous in its choice of mobile OS platforms so far – it has manufactured smartphones based on Microsoft Windows, Symbian, Android and Linux – it is entering the mobile OS market very late with its solution. With the prospect of limited handset volumes in the near term, bada could struggle to build up a sizeable application developer community anytime soon.  That would put bada at a clear disadvantage alongside its more established rivals.   

Samsung executives, inevitably, remain upbeat.  They point to Wave's high-quality resolution screen (dubbed ‘Super AMOLED') and customisable menu and homepage. JK Shin, head of Samsung's mobile operations, also told Reuters in an interview he was optimistic that bada could be used in cheaper smartphone models to serve emerging markets. "I believe that the smartphone market will grow more than 20 percent every year for a three-year time frame, and the growth rate in emerging markets is much higher than that of advanced countries," he told Reuters

Samsung said it plans to launch five to seven phone models using bada software in 2010, as well as to treble its smartphone shipments this year. The Korean giant has about 20 percent of the global mobile phone market but only about three percent of the smartphone market – it has a lot of catching up to do in this space.

Competition is also heating up in the smartphone space.  Sony Ericsson, another struggler in the smartphone segment, announced in Barcelona an expansion of its touchscreen smartphone portfolio from two to five. The new additions include slide-out QWERTY keyboards. More smartphone announcements are sure to come from manufacturers at MWC.    

BroadSoft, a specialist in VoIP applications to the telecommunications industry, has unveiled BroadWorks Mobility Suite, a set of mobile features for its BroadWorks Application Server platform.  Designed specifically for mobile and converged operators, these capabilities integrate with 2G and 3G networks, as well as VoIP-capable 4G LTE and WiMAX networks. With BroadWorks Mobility Suite, mobile operators can pursue new markets, enabling them to increase revenues, improve profit margins and grow average revenue per user (ARPU), all while ensuring higher customer satisfaction. 

The BroadWorks Mobility Suite includes:

  a.. Mobile SIP trunk – a major enhancement to BroadSoft's SIP trunking solution, our Mobile SIP trunk leverages a premises-based component called the Mobile Manager to deliver fixed-mobile convergence over SIP trunks to a premises PBX, giving enterprises greater control over how corporate mobile devices are used;
  a.. Native mobile SS7 support – allowing BroadWorks to seamlessly integrate with mobile networks using standard GSM MAP, CAMEL, ANSI-41 MAP and WIN  protocols;
  a.. Location-based services – such as Home Zone/Office Zone preferential calling rates, location-based call routing and mobile presence and location applications for Unified Communications;
  a.. Short Message Service (SMS) 2.0 – extending SMS services beyond mobile phones, to all IP-enabled devices, whether a fixed phone, a soft-phone or web-enabled consumer device;
  a.. Rich Communications Suite (RCS) – integrating presence, instant messaging, content sharing, and multimedia messaging service with voice and video calling; and
  a.. Voice over LTE ("One Voice") support – allowing mobile operators to migrate voice and SMS traffic to LTE at their own pace, without additional development investment.
 
"BroadWorks Mobility Suite addresses the challenges many mobile operators face today, the desire to offer the latest innovative communication services to capitalize on new revenue opportunities in the near-term, while developing their 3G and 4G IP-network build-out strategies," said Scott Hoffpauir, chief technology officer for BroadSoft.  "We are enabling mobile operators to expand into new market segments, while ensuring our BroadWorks mobile capabilities easily migrate to future networks, such as LTE and WiMAX."

To leverage the newest BroadWorks mobile capabilities, BroadSoft has developed solutions for both the business and consumer sectors; BroadWorks Mobile Unified Communications and BroadWorks Mobile Consumer Experience.

BroadWorks Mobile Unified Communications

Businesses are facing new challenges with the growth of distributed workforces and ever-changing business regulations.  With BroadWorks Mobile Unified Communications (UC), mobile operators can now deliver enterprise IP communications capabilities not available from legacy intelligent network (IN) based solutions. Mobile UC meets the sophisticated communications needs of today's enterprises by enabling them to: 

• Manage communication costs and meet government regulations by extending company policies to employee mobile devices and tracking mobile phone use in real-time;
• Enhance employee efficiency and collaboration by extending Unified Communications capabilities, including the integration of enterprise applications such as CRM and ERP, to mobile devices; and
• Improve "reachability" of employees by leveraging a mobile operator's ability to deliver any IP communication service to a single number, including voice, SMS, IM, presence and location-based applications.

BroadWorks Mobile Consumer Experience

BroadWorks Mobile Consumer Experience meets the demands of today's hyper-connected society, allowing individuals to stay connected anytime, anywhere and with any device.  By utilizing this new solution, mobile operators have the power to bolster customer satisfaction by allowing consumers to:

• Take control and have peace of mind by managing all of their communications services and devices from a single account, from a secure network;
• Use their desired communication method, voice, video, chat, text-messaging, content sharing, at any time and from anywhere; and
• Optimize their communication experience by seamlessly moving a call from their mobile phone to their fixed high-definition line or video device when they arrive home.

Good Technology and LG Electronics today announced that the two companies have signed a worldwide licensing agreement to include Good Technology's Good for You mobile communications offering on a broad range of LG mobile devices beginning with European, Asian, and Latin American markets in partnership with leading mobile operators.

The first LG mobile phones featuring the Good for You offering include the LG-GW520, LG-GW550, LG-GW620, LG-GD510, LG-GM730, LG-GM750. These LG mobile phones with Good for You are available in a number of European, Asian and Latin American countries and through a number of leading operators including O2 and Bouygues Telecom and Vodafone.

"Today mobile device makers realize that a vertically integrated set of services on a robust platform is a requirement to go along with an attractive form factor in providing complete value to end users.  And these mobile users want to be connected all the time in a wide variety of ways–from email to texting to social networking to sharing photos–and Good is committed to providing the solution that makes it as easy as possible for people to connect, communicate and share on the go," said Brian A. Bogosian, chairman, CEO and president of Good. "Good for You extends mobile communications beyond email with an integrated experience that spans messaging, social networking, and media sharing. Embedding Good for You on LG mobile devices enhances the user's experience by making it easy to discover and setup and by providing a single, integrated application for accessing the user's most valued communications, social networking, and media sharing tools and services."

ZTE, a global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions, introduced today at the 2010 GSMA Mobile World Congress, together with Qualcomm, the world's first ultra-slim big-screen BMP 3G smartphone – ZTE Bingo. Additionally, ZTE is showcasing its 5 Android smartphone models for the first time. ZTE is one of the few mobile phone manufacturers to offer smartphones based a variety of mobile operating systems, including OMS, Linux and Windows Mobile. 

ZTE Bingo adopts Qualcomm's Brew Mobile Platform (BMP), a Mobile Operation System that provides high-end functionality to mobile devices. In addition to full support for Adobe Flash, the platform provides advanced terminal functions such as touch screen, multimedia, window management, open platform scalability and extended support for local application development. The Brew Mobile Platform's open operating system has attracted wide attention from software developers and the global communication industry since its industry launch. 

Equipped with an accelerator, the slim and stylish ZTE Bingo supports a download speed of 7.2Mbps, providing unobstructed mobile Internet surfing. It also adopts a new dynamic UI that supports application development and multi-touch functionality, significantly improving operational experience. Third-party applications such as MSN, Google map, Facebook can be build in to enrich users' entertainment experience. The mobile phone is also equipped with 5 million/300,000-pixel dual cameras, a 3.2-inch touch screen and A-GPS positioning.

"With the development of the communication industry, smartphones will become more popular. Goldman Sachs predicts that smartphone sales will grow by 38% in 2010. In Europe and even worldwide, smartphones will become a very important development direction for ZTE in 2010," said Mr. Lin Qiang, President of ZTE's Mobile Phone Operation Department in Europe, stressing the importance of smartphones. In fact, ZTE not only provides handsets based on Windows Mobile, Symbian, Android, OMS, BMP and other operating systems, but also provides various configurations for consumers to meet their diversified demands.

ZTE has assembled European-specific strategies and R&D teams to support its European customers and ensure a strong market and brand presence. It also provides a service platform development center, a special ID design department, and comprehensive feedback and after-sales support programs designed specifically for European consumers. In Poland, it has set up a special after-sales service management platform. Such initiatives demonstrate ZTE's commitment to providing a robust portfolio of cost-effective data, voice products and integrated products to meet the continually developing needs of consumers and operators around the globe.

Aepona, a global provider of telecoms software products and services headquartered in Belfast, Northern Ireland, today announced that it has been selected by the GSMA for its launch of the world's first commercial implementation of OneAPI, an initiative that aims to make it much easier for application providers and enterprises to mobile-enable their applications and services across multiple operators. The service is being launched in Canada as a commercial Pilot, connecting to the three major Canadian mobile operators – Bell Mobility, TELUS and Rogers Wireless.

The GSMA chose Aepona as its prime contractor and platform supplier for the Pilot following a rigorous selection process. Aepona is providing its Universal Service Platform (USP) together with managed services, including application provider on-boarding, developer support and platform management. In delivering the Pilot platform, Aepona is working with Transaction Network Services (TNS), who is providing the hosting infrastructure and operational services and expertise required to implement a carrier-grade, highly available commercial system.

Graham Trickey, Senior Director at the GSMA responsible for the OneAPI initiative commented: "We have been working with Aepona since the beginning of the OneAPI project in 2008, initially to implement the OneAPI Reference Implementation which was successfully launched at Mobile World Congress in 2009. Since that time, we've made significant progress in developing a commercial framework for OneAPI, and I'm delighted that we are now in a position to launch a real commercial OneAPI service – an achievement that has been helped by the expertise and dedication of the Aepona team. Aepona was chosen because its platform combines the essential business and technical functions for an aggregated commercial API service into an integrated solution."

Aepona's CEO, Al Snyder, said: "We are delighted to have been selected by the GSMA on this pioneering project. The OneAPI Commercial Pilot in Canada demonstrates Network as a Service and Mobile Cloud Computing in action, where OneAPI-based Telco resources can be accessed on-demand via the Cloud and mashed-up with Web and Device APIs to create or enhance almost any web, device, enterprise or desktop application. This initiative will benefit the entire mobile and web applications community, from consumers, developers and enterprises through to mobile operators and aggregators.  We commend the GSMA's leadership in helping to drive the Mobile Cloud Computing vision towards commercial reality."

Airwide Solutions, a provider of next generation mobile messaging infrastructure, applications and solutions today announced a Real-Time Loyalty & Profiling Solution that will enable mobile operators to drive incremental lifetime value across the subscriber base, including hard-to-reach prepaid customers. Airwide's Real-Time Loyalty & Profiling Solution leverages a new partnership with Business Logic Systems (BLS), a specialist provider of real-time prepaid marketing campaign automation and customer loyalty solutions, and enables mobile operators to stimulate top-ups and usage, reward loyalty and reactivate dormant subscribers.

In the maturing mobile market, operators need to create more value from their entire customer base, but especially from their prepaid subscribers.  However, targeting this segment has always been notoriously difficult due to lack of customer information and contact details, which makes traditional marketing nearly impossible and very expensive.  Airwide's Real-Time Loyalty & Profiling Solution gives operators the ability to quickly and easily access, analyse and act upon event data in real-time to create a targeted, two-way dialogue with subscribers, via mobile messaging. Using the unique RealTime Prepaid Marketing Engine from BLS, in conjunction with Airwide's AirGate MultiMessaging next-generation messaging gateway, the new solution enables operators to quickly and profitably reach the entire customer base, increasing the lifetime value of subscribers and proactively managing their prepaid base. 

"Operators have sophisticated mechanisms to market to and manage their relationships with postpaid subscribers. Yet in most cases the majority of their subscriber base is prepaid, and there is little visibility to these subscribers, and traditional marketing methods do not work.  This is increasingly causing significant business problems including increasing churn and lost revenue as operators have no meaningful relationship with these subscribers", said Jay Seaton, CMO of Airwide Solutions. "Airwide's new Real-Time Loyalty & Profiling Solution offers operators unique capabilities for building a two-way, personalized and multichannel dialogue that will build meaningful ongoing relationships with prepaid subscribers with timely and relevant offers, communication, prompts, rewards and activations, driving up recharge revenues, stimulating service usage and increasing customer retention."

"Prepaid customers are notoriously fickle and as they continue to grow in numbers and importance, mobile operators must successfully market to these subscribers to help increase their life time value," commented Tim Yates, CEO, Business Logic Systems.  "Traditional CRM methods such as mail and outbound calling are ineffective and costly.  By leveraging Business Logic Systems' technology together with their mobile messaging technology Airwide can help mobile operators proactively reach prepaid customers, turning inactive users into loyal customers and encouraging occasional users to top-up regularly."

Unlike other solutions, which are tied to specific billing or charging systems, the Airwide Real-Time Loyalty and Profiling Solution focuses on real-time and interactive campaign management from a messaging perspective, leveraging the power and number one market share of the AirGate MultiMessaging next-generation messaging gateway for easy multi-channel integration with any existing messaging infrastructure.  By employing messaging for immediate, high-impact and ubiquitous campaigns operators have an unparalleled means of boosting revenue from all subscriber populations.

ip.access, developer of 2G and 3G in-building wireless solutions, today announced that it was chosen by French fixed and mobile operator Bouygues Telecom to provide 2G picocells for its enterprise customers across France. Bouygues Telecom has more than 10 million subscribers nationwide, making it France's third largest mobile operator, and was recently rated number one for customer relations in mobile telephony.

Bouygues Telecom chose the ip.access nanoGSM system to provide valuable extra 2G and EDGE cellular coverage to enterprise customers exactly where it is needed – such as indoors and in areas of high network traffic.

With an ip.access nanoGSM picocell installed on their premises and plugged into an existing fixed IP connection, Bouygues Telecom business customers will be able to use their mobile devices for high-quality voice and mobile data services indoors without any lapse in service performance – such as dropped calls or the data flow being interrupted.

Bouygues Telecom chose nanoGSM following a rigorous and competitive selection process. Unlike other rival picocell solutions on the market, nanoGSM provides high-speed EDGE connectivity.  Also instrumental in Bouygues Telecom's decision was nanoGSM's impressive track record, together with endorsements from other operator customers. With more than 50 live network installations around the world, nanoGSM is the world's most-deployed picocell.

"The ip.access nanoGSM system met all our requirements when we assessed the various solutions on the market. nanoGSM's reliability, together with its rapid and seamless integration with our existing core network assets was confirmed during the trial period and the first site deployments", said Sebastian Racu, in charge of the picocell program at Bouygues Telecom.

Commenting on the news, ip.access CEO Stephen Mallinson said, "We're delighted to work with Bouygues Telecom to deliver a market-leading cellular service to their customers. Mobile network operators view picocells – both 2G and 3G – as an effective, scalable and cost-efficient means to improve the performance and quality of their mobile networks. Our relationships with major operators worldwide such as Bouygues Telecom establish ip.access as the undisputed leader and innovator in the cellular-over-IP market."

ip.access is showcasing its picocell and femtocell solutions Mobile World Congress.

Orange today announced the launch of a daily data roaming tariff across the European Union (EU). The €2 for 2MB daily data bundle is designed to offer Orange customers peace of mind when accessing mobile data services anywhere in the EU, and is designed to give customers the confidence to check their mail, surf the web and access social networking sites abroad, safe in the knowledge that they know exactly what the cost will be when they return home. Specifically for iPhone customers and launching in France first with some other countries to follow, Orange is also offering a €5 for 10MB daily data roaming.

The €2 for 2MB Travel Data Daily roaming bundle, which launched in Spain and Romania in 2009, is now being rolled out to the UK, Poland, France, Slovakia, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, Belgium and Moldova. Across the Orange footprint, these bundles will be offered to existing customers on an opt-in basis.

Putting the 2MBs into context, this equates to approximately thousands of Twitter messages, 80 to 100 emails (not attachments), 80 to 100 web pages (text) or approximately 15 to 20 images. While attractive to smartphone customers  – for whom accessing mobile internet services is second nature – the plan will appeal to the broader base of customers using feature phones with internet, email and social networking capabilities.

Olaf Swantee, senior executive vice president for Orange's global mobile business, commented: "Our customers shouldn't be constrained by national boundaries or worries over their bill when they're abroad. For many of our customers, who are just starting out on their mobile internet journey, we want to give them peace of mind and create a simple platform to be able to experience and experiment with mobile multimedia services wherever they are, whenever they want.

"For roughly the price of a cup of coffee, we are helping our customers keep doing what they're doing – it's not designed for heavier users who use the mobile internet to download music or games but for everyday customers who want to be able to check their emails, tweet or upload their pictures to social networking sites, anywhere they may be within the EU."

The Travel Data Daily roaming bundle forms part of a suite of products from Orange Travel said to give customers total flexibility over their voice and data roaming needs. Orange Travel offers are designed to provide affordable, simple and transparent pricing tailored to our business and our consumer customers' needs.