Jataayu makes mobile browsing exciting

Jataayu Software has developed an Internet browser for mobile phones. Jataayu

is the first Indian company to develop a mobile browser, a facility gaining

popularity in developed countries.

The browser, jB5, will enable cellular phone service providers to push HTML

content to their subscribers. For the subscribers, the technology will enable

browsing the Internet while on the move.

Jataayu sees great market potential for its mobile browser as most mobile

manufacturers would want to have such a facility on the devices.

Mahesh Kumar Jain, managing director, Jataayu Software

explains the usage and significance of this new technology in an interview to Sigi

Achappa of CIOL.

Excerpts.

Why do you call the jB5 browser as  'truly mobile'?

Browsing on a mobile phone has its limitations. It is different from desktop

browsing. For one, a mobile device has a tiny screen, whereas the desk screen is

large. So, that becomes an important factor - the interface and the way content

to be rendered has to be adapted to such small displays. Then there is the issue

of the content itself that is being accessed; what with the varied types of

content on the WEB as well as WAP sites having well formed to poorly constructed

pages. jB5 with ART (Adaptive Rendering Technology) addresses such challenges

and more in delivering an enriching user experience as far as mobile browsing

goes.

How will the HTML browser impact mobile data services?

Typically, most content in the last 15 years was meant for desktops. The

Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) which came in the late 1990s brought in a

level of standardization in terms of accessing content over a mobile device.

Mobile Internet users found the initial WAP experience did not meet the

proclaimed hype, so we saw a decline in 2001 and the creation of WAP content

also slowed down. But lately, there has been a resurgence on the WAP front, with

major operators like Vodafone, Orange, etc creating operator specific content

portals around WAP in a big way. As voice revenues are going south, operators

are looking at increasing their ARPUs from data services by promoting such

portals.

Though the content generation for WAP is gaining momentum the availability is

still limited. Given this scenario, the enabling access of regular Internet

content on the mobile presents itself as the most viable alternative.                                                                                                                    



Now that handsets have more capabilities they need browsers that support these
capabilities. Information access through mobile phones is rising rapidly world

over. There is a huge gap - three million PCs compared to three billion

handsets, and the gap is widening. This indicates that it is easier for people

to access information through mobiles. Even the time spent with the handset is

more than the desktop. In such a situation, the browser becomes a critical

interface to access information.

Are Jataayu's products based on open standards?

As a compnay, we strongly believe in propagating and adoption of open

standards- be it in terms of the product specifications or in the environment

used in product development or the method and tools followed in the development

cycle. Our handsets products are on JCF, Jataayu's client framework  - a

proven architecture that is modular and ensures easy porting and integration on

varied platforms. Infact, JCF has been ported on over 12 platforms.

What impact will this browser have on your own WAP

products such as the WAP gateway?

One of the important things with the browser is, like e-mail, both will

co-exist. In fact, it should give a boost to push e-mail. With 3G capabilities,

the browser plays a big role. 'Push content' support is an important part of

the browser. Moreover, jB5 is a dual mode browser that supports both HTML

profile as well as the WAP profile and would allow users to get the best out of

the browser as it combines the functionalities of WAP as well as WEB for a

unique browser experience. We think that the instant

messaging (IM) will become the next popular thing. After the browser, the

next evolution is IM.

MMS is too complex. Another big thing that we see in handsets is increased

revenue for operators. It should not be treated as a rival to SMS, as it is

one-tenth the cost of SMS. There is a lot more flexibility.

Is the  jB5 browser meant only for high-end cell phones?

With jB5 we are trying to redefine HTML browsing by bringing it down to

low-end mobile phones also. There has been a growth in handsets that have WAP

browser; even entry level handsets these days have browser functionality. We are

extending our experience in optimizing the WAP browser on such low-end phones

and are currently integrating jB5 on couple of customer platforms that are for

feature phone mobile designs.  We are hopeful that by September this year,

a good number of handsets will be launched with the HTML browser. By next year,

browsing of HTML content will have become popular. In Africa, more people access

information out of their handsets. The same will be true for India. Some

operators get 13 million hits in a day. Now, they are targeting 50 million to

100 million hits. And once the capabilities are available there will be an

explosion in browsing.

Read more on this interview