This is because Ericsson is field trialling high-speed General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) data systems with more than 45 operators in the Americas Asia-Pacific and Europe

GPRS is seen as a first vital step in the migration to third generation mobile networks for mobile internet applications and a other advanced datacom.

Were seeing a tremendously strong market demand for our GPRS systems and the applications they enable says Per Nordlof general manager at Ericsson Network Operators.

GPRS is key to providing efficient wireless datacom applications such as web-browsing.

The new store is at Commercial Road Portsmouth. The company promoted its opening day with entertainers a disco and give-away promotions.

For the first week customers were entered into a free draw to win prizes such as TVs videos CDs and various items of Ericsson and One 2 One branded clothing.

The Mobile Phone Store is 40 per cent owned by BTCellnet.

The new Orange internet service will also offer registered customers access to news sport travel weather and entertainment information from leading content providers.

Orange has planned for its internet service to enhance and add value. The company says that internet adoption has until now been restricted to fixed wires and that wirefree access will be a key medium for the future growth of the internet. Orange considers that many of the services currently available on the net such as news information entertainment and travel news are much more applicable to users when they are on the move.

As part of its strategy to be a major internet service provider Orange has signed a a multi-million pound agreement to use the Sun-Netscape Alliance system for its server solutions. well as hardware and professional services

The trials are part of ensuring phones and infrastructure from different manufacturers will work together to support the WAP (Wireless Application Protocol).

Mitsubishis first WAP phone from the Trium range is called the Geo-WAP and will provide connection to the internet.

Ericsson reckons almost half of all mobile users will use WAP by the end of 2001.

The Forum has more than doubled its membership in the last fourmonths.

This is outstanding testimony to the growing interest in the mobile internet and a tribute to the fact that WAP is a completely open standard designed to work on any wireless device or network said Gregory Williams board chairman of the WAP Forum.

WAP is the first step toward Mobile Internet and third generation mobile technologies. Mobile Internet will not only make the current Internet available from mobile terminals but create a whole new set of services that will be available anywhere anytime for all users. Services such as banking shopping ticketing and entertainment soon will be available wherever the user wants them.

WAP currently runs over regular mobile systems so data transfer speed is limited. But within the next couple of years speeds will increase with GPRS and real third generation (3G) technology.

With GPRS users will have instant WAP access and more than five times faster connections than today. 3G enables video chats and full internet browsing on the move.

WAP will be part of everyday life when consumers have WAP terminals and content providers offer applications such as e-mail voice messaging calender e-commerce banking services cityguides ticketing and restaurant reservations. Operators also need to have WAP Gateways in their systems in order for the users to access WAP services.

This is expected to grow to 10 million subscribers by the end of the year 2000 says GSM Association chairman Michael Stocks.

In several countries GSM networks are the only point of communication for the community in remote areas says Andrew Mthembu chairman of GSM Africa the GSM Associations African Interest Group.

Rapid GSM customer growth is being experienced in South Africa Zimbabwe Botswana Namibia as well as the Seychelles Mauritius and the Reunion Islands. In South Africa Botswana and Zimbabwe there is wide acceptance of the pre-paid services with a number of operators providing a wide variety of GSM services to both business and domestic users

The campaign by agency Abbott Mead Vickers will appear in press and radio for six weeks and on posters sites until the end of December.

The campaign is designed to ensure businesses are aware of the very real benefits our products and services can bring them said BTCellnet head of business marketing Lorraine Stone.

In addition Digianswer claims to be one of the most advanced implementers of Bluetooth technology and will offer a comprehensive range of Bluetooth products to the OEM market in 1999.

Digianswer was founded in 1986 to manufacture and market a digital answering machine for use with mobile phones. The company has evolved into product development utilising the technology it has developed over the years in the area of DSP for voice processing applications. Major OEM customers using its technology include Bosch Ericsson Motorola Philips Siemens and Sony.

The takeover is part of Motorolas strategy for developing Bluetooth and other wireless products.

Like Bluetooth HomeRF are short-range wireless standards that allow quick easy-to-use data transfers between mobile and home electronics products. Motorola will use Digianswers Bluetooth technology in cellular phones two-way radios accessories broadband home networking products and in-car products.

Digianswer is an excellent choice to help Motorola rapidly provide personal connectivity to our customers across all of our product families said Janice Webb senior vice president and general manager of the Motorolas personal networking group.

They have strong knowledge of our products and were the first to publicly announce several Bluetooth solutions. Our collective experience will speed the efficient integration of their technologies into our personal area network offerings.

Bluetooth will eliminate the need for cabling between laptop PCs personal digital assistants and cellular phones. Wireless e-mail and internet access file transfer cordless telephony wireless cellular and two-way radio headsets are just the initial applications planned for Bluetooth. Digianswer has already supplied the market with several Bluetooth products.

The group is to be a focal point for international co-operation with the worlds regulatory administrative and standards organisations. IMT2000 is the term used by the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) as the specification for 3G services based upon a family of compatible standards of which a GSM-based spin-off is set to be the most widespread.

The group will cover policies and strategies for standardisation regulation and operation as well as liaising with other 3G bodies around the world says the groups leader Jonas Twingler.

Our aim is to ensure that the best interests of both operators and customers are served. The IMT2000 group will play a critical role in ensuring global co-ordination of generic 3G standards technology and regulatory procedures.

Our goal is to lead the way in providing a forum for operator harmonisation. This was key to the success of GSM becoming a global technology standard. We aim to do the same with IMT2000 standards.

GSM Association chairman Michael Stocks said:

The GSM Association has already commenced preparation of inter-operational standards for 3G. Now we are looking beyond the technology to the wider picture of integrated service offerings commercial interoperability and more.