Bondi Unites Mobile Majors for Web Services
Web is traveling fast with nomadic consumers. As operators realize that key to woo these consumers will be a rich crop of mobile applications, some of them have launched a joint initiative christened BONDI. The idea is to create a blueprint for developing buyer-friendly applications without compromising customer security. AT&T, T-Mobile, Telenor, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, and Vodafone are at the forefront. But why BONDI? Because like the Australian beach, says OMTP, it wants mobile customers to have the greatest surfing experience whilst making the experience as safe as possible. It’s safe to surf.

Supported by the Open Mobile Terminal Platform (OMTP) members including 3 Group, AT&T, T-Mobile, Telenor, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, and Vodafone, BONDI will provide a secure web services interface that can be used by all web developers across multiple device platforms. This will provide the opportunity for web developers to address a mass market of consumers and to drive the use of data services on mobiles.

BONDI aims to harmonize the various open and proprietary ongoing initiatives and this cooperative work will minimize the potential for technology fragmentation. BONDI, under the OMTP umbrella, will contribute towards ongoing standardization work to help create a new rich web experience for mobile while also ensuring an appropriate degree of protection that will maintain the current level of trust by mobile phone users.

The initiative promises to expose key handset features to web developers to help them develop more function-rich, user-friendly, and relevant applications. The new handset software will be engineered in such a way as to prevent fraudulent and malicious activity through unauthorized access to functions or sensitive personal information.

Photo courtesy: OMTP