Wireless companies merge to push Wap

Wireless software companies Phone.com and Software.com have agreed to merge in a stock-swap deal worth $6.4bn.

The new company is expected to increase global acceptance of Wap and help introduce unified messaging to mobile devices.

The combined force will be headed by Don Listwin, former Cisco executive vice president, whose resignation from the networking giant was announced on Tuesday.

The as yet unnamed company will boast a combined portfolio of 140 partnerships with communications service providers worldwide including BT, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom and Telecom Italia.

Software.com develops tools that allow service providers to offer features such as email, IP unified messaging, mobile mail and mobile instant messaging. Phone.com sells products that allow web content to be received by mobile phones.

According to the companies, the merged business aims to provide infrastructures and application software to enable the delivery of email, voicemail, unified messaging, and directory and wireless web access for IP-based networks.

However, some observers believe that the merged force has set itself an ambitious goal. An analyst at Zona Research said: "Their task may prove daunting given the hordes of current Microsoft Exchange and Lotus users who would welcome Outlook or Notes on their Wap phones.

"These two companies clearly recognise that the future includes unified access and messaging, but the leaders have yet to be determined."

The new company will first need to address a legal issue, however. Fellow wireless communications company Geoworks claims that it owns patents that are vital for companies wanting to build Wap services, and is seeking licence fees from developers - Phone.com included - that want to use them.

But in a response made in April, Phone.com sued Geoworks claiming it is "aggressive" with its licensing plan.

Geoworks then filed a counter lawsuit alleging that Phone.com and its licensees using Phone.com's UP Server Suite and UP Browser infringe on Geoworks' patent.

While the wireless data market is still in its infancy, the potential is huge. Most of the major mobile carriers in the US have started to offer wireless web services following the success of their European counterparts.

Industry analysts predict that there will be more than one billion mobile phones in use around the world by 2003.