During the last two years, we’ve been invaded by a new family of acronyms and a flurry of terms related to wireless technology. But what is the wireless internet ? 

In today’s business environment, executives and employees are more mobile than ever: their access to data and information is shifting from the desktop to internet-enabled wireless devices. Based on the promise of a vast market, cellular operators and 

hundreds of smaller companies are promised a wealth of new services. 

Yet every user’s daily experience with mobile phones is one of calls breaking up or off, poor voice quality, dull WAP services, and patchy network coverage. There are innumerable questions raised both by technology and by what consumers will actually want and pay to use. What services may be offered at what price and when? Which services are most likely to be embraced by the consumers? How will wireless data technology impact on both companies and individuals? What new business opportunities will arise from mobile commerce? What are the risks? What lessons have the early experiments taught? What will be the future shape of handheld wireless devices? Is WAP dead? How did Japan’s DoCoMo build I-mode into a service used by over 20 million people? Will location-based, ‘contextual’ services be the ultimate convenience – or the worst privacy nightmare? How vulnerable to viruses and hackers is the wireless world?

The author was the European Editor of the Industry Standard, has worked as an Internet columnist for the New York Times and held political and business editorial positions for several magazines and newspapers in Europe. He has also co-founded two Internet services companies and has been a director of internet strategy at the World Economic Forum (the ‘Davos Forum’).