Qualcomm Adds Some Flash to BREW
Qualcomm and Adobe Systems announced they will integrate Adobe Flash technology into the BREW Client software in an attempt to bridge the gap separating the mobile application and web content development communities, promising developers a more robust environment to create Flash-based apps and services for mobile devices.
According to Qualcomm, the new BREW Mobile Platform will extend the BREW Client services and API with expanded platform capabilities, multimedia and content support, access to device databases, connectivity support and touchscreen user interface development. The platform, open to developers, operators and handset manufacturers alike, promises to improve efficiency across the developmental process, including tooling, content distribution and consumption.
"There should be seamless integration for developers," said Qualcomm senior vice president of engineering Steve Sprigg at last week's BREW 2008 event in San Diego, adding the platform is in large part a response to feedback from the developer community.
Anup Murarka, director of technical marketing for Adobe's mobile and devices business unit, said a central goal of the BREW Mobile Platform is expanding the development community by facilitating publication of Flash-based applications. "We want to broaden opportunities across the entire ecosystem," he said. To that end, both Qualcomm and Adobe will provide tools for BREW Mobile Platform--for native application developers, Qualcomm will provide integrated support for the Eclipse and Visual Studio Integrated Development Environments, while Flash designers and developers can use existing Adobe development tools like Adobe Flash CS3 Professional and Adobe Device Central CS3.
The BREW Mobile Platform extends Qualcomm's longstanding partnership with Adobe--most recently, Qualcomm signed on to join Adobe's Open Screen Project, which brings together players throughout the mobile value chain to develop solutions for delivering rich web and video devices across the fragmented device landscape. The Open Screen Project promises to make the Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR runtime consistent across mobile devices, desktop computers and set-top boxes, complementing BREW Mobile Platform by bolstering developers and content companies' efforts to simplify and streamline the user experience.
"[Qualcomm and Adobe] have a number of common customers and a shared vision," Sprigg said. "We want to incorporate the kinds of advanced features we've previously seen in smartphones into mass-market devices."
Also noteworthy: The BREW Mobile Platform is fully backward-compatible with applications developed for previous editions of the BREW Client, enabling customers to exploit the new capabilities while still supporting existing BREW applications.
Qualcomm said it will release chipsets featuring the BREW Mobile Platform this fall, with plans to debut a common runtime environment by mid-2009. "We see this [partnership with Adobe] as a continuum," Sprigg said. "We have a very good roadmap for where we're headed in the future." [FierceDeveloper]
New BREW Client 4-Series
Technologies and solutions developer Qualcomm announced the release of its new BREW Client 4-Series wireless device architecture at the BREW 2007 event last week in San Diego. According to Qualcomm, Client 4-Series offers new platform and developer-facing features to enable handset makers to better collaborate with developers, promising manufacturers a platform to securely expose hardware and software layers to developer partners in order to create new applications for specific devices.
In addition, Qualcomm says developers will gain content-framework support allowing for enhanced content discovery, delivery and installation as well as support for security and DRM. Japanese mobile operator KDDI was the first carrier to leverage the Client 4-Series architecture in tandem with its KDDI Common Platform and Qualcomm's Mobile Station Modem MSM7500 chipset software, creating an integrated platform with software architecture consistent across devices.
According to Qualcomm, BREW Client 4.1 is scheduled for availability in the first quarter of 2008 and will include an SDK and three release versions: Porting Kit for MSM chipsets, Porting Kit Generic and Porting Evaluation Kit.
In related news from BREW 2007, Qualcomm announced a partnership with Hutchison Whampoa-owned mobile operator and media company 3 to launch handsets based on the BREW platform. According to 3, plans call for leveraging BREW to offer highly-integrated, feature-rich applications that capitalize on the solution's low-level API access and OTA downloading capabilities.
To date, 3 has launched commercial 3G services in the U.K., Italy, Australia, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Hong Kong, Israel and Ireland, with a total population coverage of roughly 175 million: "Using BREW, we can embed applications on the handset to deliver a single integrated user experience, which in turn will encourage take-up of our services," said Frank Meehan, director and general manager for Hutchison Whampoa Limited's global 3G handset and application group, in a prepared statement. [FierceDeveloper]
The iPhone is No Smartphone
Apple's iPhone was the talk of the town after its January 9 launch. Industry observers were by and large impressed with the new device, praising its user interface, innovation, and seamless integration. But two senior ABI Research analysts — wireless research director Stuart Carlaw, and principal mobile broadband analyst Philip Solis — point out that while the iPhone is undoubtedly clever and capable, it is not correct to call it a smartphone, as much of the media has done.
ABI Research defines a smartphone as a cellular handset using an open, commercial operating system that supports third party applications. The iPhone runs the Apple Macintosh computer operating system, OS X, so at first glance it would seem to fall into the smartphone category, which might help justify its announced $500+ pricetag. But, says Solis, "It turns out that this device will be closed to third party applications. Therefore we must conclude at this point that, based on our current definition, the iPhone is not a smartphone: it is a very high-end feature phone."
Feature phones' functionality (dictated by the software which controls the hardware) is closed and controlled by an operator or the device manufacturer, whereas smartphones are supported by a third-party ecosystem, where competition in the software space creates applications that add value. "Sure," concedes Solis, "feature phones have third party applications too — but these are relatively weak and limited applications that work with the middleware such as Java and BREW. Applications designed for smartphones can be written to access core functionality from the OS itself, and are therefore usually more powerful and efficient. The competition in an open environment also yields more cutting edge, rich applications.
"Stuart Carlaw adds, "Consumers will not be willing to settle for a second-rate cell phone just to have superior music. Apple must get the phone engineering part of the equation right, and it is difficult to see how they will accomplish that with no track record in the industry. Even though they are working with some prominent suppliers, the task of putting all of the building blocks together cannot be underestimated." [ABI Research]
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