Platform-as-a-service allows customers to extend back-office, business applications to mobile workers; delivers application mobility on-demand across any carrier and any mobile device

MINNEAPOLIS-- Gearworks, a leading provider of location-based mobile business applications, today launched appmosphereTM — a carrier-class, location-enabled mobile application delivery platform. Appmosphere provides application mobility on-demand, on multiple wireless networks, on any mobile device and on the carrier’s monthly bill.

Appmosphere represents a new category of application mobility Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) solutions. It was specifically designed to address the daunting challenges faced by companies and independent software vendors (ISVs) seeking to “mobilize” and location-enable their business applications. These challenges include building and delivering location-enabled mobile business applications that:

    * Are deployable, distributable and billable across multiple wireless carrier networks
    * Interoperate with a broad range of location-based services (LBS) infrastructures
    * Run on any application-enabled mobile device (e.g. phones, BlackBerry, PDAs)
    * Support all mobile operating systems (e.g. BREW, JAVA, Windows Mobile)
    * Are billable on an end user’s monthly wireless bill

Appmosphere allows wireless carriers to develop and deploy a portfolio of LBS mobile business applications tailored to the needs of specific markets, verticals or customers. Appmosphere’s extensive Business Support Systems (BSS) and Operations Support Systems (OSS) integration capabilities provide an “integrate once, run many” approach to provisioning, revenue assurance, billing, SLA compliance and customer care. Using appmosphere, carriers can provide ISVs and enterprises the ability to build, publish and provision custom LBS mobile business applications without fear of impact to their network and LBS resources, voice interference, or device compatibility and performance.

“As wireless carriers look to deploy or evolve LBS mobile business applications they are faced with several hurdles. Key among them is the ability to quickly deliver a portfolio broad enough to address their key markets, the ability to offer enterprise customers a way to tailor mobile solutions to their specific needs, and the need to expand the number of data-savvy channels to market,” said Stephen Drake, Program Director, IDC, Mobile Enterprise. “Successful suppliers for the mobile operator will take into account these key challenges and focus on carrier-delivered mobile business application models.”

For the first time, ISVs have a cost-effective and on-demand way to mobilize their applications without being forced to either limit customer choice or support hundreds of different mobile devices, multiple wireless carriers and four unique mobile operating systems. Using appmosphere, ISVs can build, brand, publish and market their mobile offerings all within a single platform and be assured of interoperability across carriers’ networks and mobile devices.

“As an AppExchange partner, Gearworks’ appmosphere platform will extend salesforce.com’s customer service applications to the field on all types of devices on all major carriers,” said Chuck Dietrich, vice president, Mobile, at salesforce.com. “Taking advantage of location-based data and synchronizing communications from call centers to field employees to customers, companies will be able to streamline how call centers dispatch jobs to mobile devices and incorporate job data back to Salesforce, providing new levels of efficiency and service.”

“This is a great opportunity for NIM to take our leading turn-by-turn driving direction technology for mobile devices and, with the flexibility of appmosphere, make it available to any enterprise that recognizes navigation as critical to employee productivity,” said Doug Antone, president and chief executive officer for Networks In Motion.

“Appmosphere ensures wireless carriers experience return on their infrastructure investments and deliver high quality customer experiences, while providing ISVs a new channel to the growing mobility marketplace,” said Todd Krautkremer, president and CEO of Gearworks. “Most importantly, it ensures customers receive software, mobile devices, mobile data networks and integration services through the convenience of a single bill.”

Appmosphere is the technology foundation for Gearworks’ industry leading mobile resource management solutions, including its etrace® product and carrier-branded products. More information on appmosphere is available at http://www.gearworks.com/platform/.