Wireless Future - Telenor

to create individual services will be improved.
Users may download up-to-date application
parts and specify where and when they may be
reached or how they want to access a service.
The information is filtered according to the
specific needs of the customer: user preferences
for certain stores or restaurants would
automatically be registered in the customer
database. Whenever the caller initiates a request
for the nearest restaurant or hotel, they
would automatically be notified of the closest
one meeting their requirements.
Besides the above mentioned R&D issues security
and personal privacy aspects are very important
in the area of context-aware services, but
also for community-based services.
Youngster will therefore make a special effort in
this area by incorporating security features. For
example, user controlled views will restrict the
set of context-information visible to service
providers. Context-information gathered by one
participant (e.g. a service provider) will not be
generally visible, only if the service provider
grants access. Mechanisms like logging, automatic
negotiation of privacy agreements and others
are under consideration to ensure a user controlled
privacy. Functions such as content management
will be important aspects to consider,
as well as how much parental surveillance is
necessary or acceptable to more independent
and mobile youths. This affects issues such as
storage of location (or other context) information
as well as storage of user profiles. For this we
plan to follow the established general principles
of the European Commission (95/46/EC and
97/66 EC).
Another important challenge – and benefit to the
Youngster Project – are regulations such as set
by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) for 911 Automatic Location Identification
(ALI) in the US or the European initiative 112,
which furthermore put a lot of pressure on content-,
service- and network providers, ensuring
that location technology is implemented. The
E911 directive stated: “By December 31, 2005,
achieve 95 percent penetration of ALI-capable
handsets among its subscribers. Furthermore,
FCC adopted the following revised standards for
Phase II location accuracy and reliability:
• For handset-based solutions: 50 metres for 67
percent of calls, 150 metres for 95 percent of
calls;
Telektronikk 1.2001
• For network-based solutions: 100 metres for
67 percent of calls, 300 metres for 95 percent
of calls.” 12)
According to the Mobile Location Services conference
held in November 1999, the European
Commission is also considering introducing a
location enabled emergency system for mobile
network carriers around 2003. 13)
Hence, a crucial aspect in the evaluation process
and acceptance testing is ensuring that the demands
for protection of privacy are fulfilled and
that the systems developed comply with current
ethical rules.
Market and Services
Market studies forecast that by 2006 mobile
location services will generate revenues more
than $20 billion. But due to the investments that
are required to collect location information, it is
difficult for a single player to market a service
on its own. Thus, the market structure in the
mobile location service market is very segmented.
Partnerships between mobile operators,
content and service providers are therefore
essential for the development of systems and
services, for the specification of standards, and
for the effective delivery of solutions to the market.
14)
One example for such a “win-win-co-operation”
is DoCoMo’s I-mode service, which currently
attracts more than 17.1 million mobile users as
per the end of year 2000.
On the other hand appropriate business models
are missing to address the specific user needs
and service provider requirements. Even though
the Youngster project is strongly focusing on a
young user group there is a need for examining
new business models.
Some of the new models will include service
usage in exchange for display space (e.g. for displaying
advertisements), sponsoring of service
usage and equipment, lower prices for active
community members as well as analysing new
cost neutral approaches, relying on a close relationship
and gain benefits in another form.
Analysing the life style and behaviour of young
people, one will identify the needs of users in
general to implement location based services. 15)
12) FCC WIRELESS 911 REQUIREMENTS, January 2001.
13) IBC – Conference, Mobile Location Services, 16-17/11/1999, Mr Leo Koolen, CEC & ETSI.
14) Partially taken from Ovum Ltd., Mobile Location Services, 1998 & Mobile Location Services:
Market Strategies, Dec. 2000.
15) Timelabs/Diebold: “Winning in Mobile eMarkets”, Oct. 2000.
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