SPRINT MAPS OUT FRAMEWORK FOR ENTERPRISE LOCATION APPS

Sprint has gotten enterprise hungry. The carrier last week launched its third enterprise-focused wireless program in so many months as part of an effort to promote its PCS network to the lucrative but still skeptical business sector.

This time it's offering up location-based services (LBS). But instead of following the usual route of creating a portfolio of applications and presenting them on a silver platter to perspective customers, Sprint is trying a different approach. According to Barry Tishgart, senior director of wireless product management, Sprint is presenting a framework to developers and enterprises, allowing them to use newly optimized location and presence features in their network to devise their own applications.

“Instead of selling a presence application, we're creating a framework that allows other applications to query presence in the network,” Tishgart said.

Sprint is using a combination of handset global positioning system, cellular triangulation and cell sector mapping — an advantage of CDMA in that all base stations are connected to the GPS satellite grid in order to maintain precise time stamps on their call packets. And on the customer side, it is integrating the framework with standards-based development environments like IBM's Websphere, allowing developers to integrate services easily with existing applications as well as having a comfortable platform on which to build new ones, Tishgart said.

Sprint's efforts to lure business into its wireless network have ramped up in recent months (see photo inset) since the company made several announcements at the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association's Wireless 2005 show. The LBS portfolio, however, is Sprint's most robust and flexible platform to date, and according to analysts, gives Sprint a powerful tool in attracting business customers. While the carrier will initially have to go after the vertical markets, where LBS is already prominent, the open LBS platform — as well as Sprint's full suite of other wireless voice and data services — will definitely be an advantage, as LBS migrates from strict verticals to the general enterprise.

“The jury's out as to whether these will be successful services for Sprint, but it's certainly a good effort” said Patrick Zerbib, analyst for Adventis' wireless practice. “Sprint will go after the obvious field technicians and vertical markets but where it recoups its investments is in general business and eventually the consumer segments.”

While Sprint isn't saying that's where it will make its money, bringing LBS to the consumer side is definitely its goal. Tishgart said once LBS establishes itself in the ranks of business, the appeal of such services to the consumer would become obvious.

Sprint wasn't the only carrier active in the enterprise markets last week. Verizon Wireless unveiled a new enterprise-class push e-mail service run on Intellisync's wireless synch platform.

These new behind-the-firewall services are available in a work group solution or a more full-fledged enterprise server solution that supports up to 5000 users. Verizon also announced it was lowering the price of its CDMA 1X data card service from $80 to $60 per month. Its EV-DO plan remains priced at $80.