New internet domain for mobiles

March 11, 2004

A group of technology and mobile firms have formed a new venture to apply for a new internet suffix that will become the mobile equivalent of .com internet sites. It is hoped the initiative would boost data usage on mobile phones and take advantage of the bandwidth offered by 3G networks.

Data usage in Europe, expect SMS, have been slow to take off. The introduction of WAP was over hyped and promised services that was undeliverable. The launch of mobile internet portals such as Vodafone live! and T-Mobile's t-zone, have lead to data usage gradually picking up.

Vodafone, 3, Orange, Microsoft and Sun Microsystems are among the nine firms involved in the new company. It will apply to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the body that manages the naming of websites around the world, for a new top level domain that will be used exclusively for websites viewed on mobile phones and PDAs.

All websites registered with the new domain will be designed specifically for held hand devices and will make accessing the internet on the move easier.

"The aim of the initiative is to accelerate the rollout of internet products and services specifically designed for mobile devices, as well as to ensure far greater operating simplicity for mobile subscribers across the globe," said the group strategy director of Vodafone, Alan Harper.