Verizon Wireless Enters Enterprise LBS Fray
Location-Based Services (LBS) have been promised for years by the industry, particularly in the USA, where the FCC-mandated E911 requirements mean that carriers now have systems in place to locate a caller's cellphone. But despite the fact that that these E911 systems are in place, few consumer or enterprise LBS applications have emerged (Nextel being an exception). But lately, Sprint seems to have caught the bug from Nextel, and now Verizon Wireless is finally out of the gates with "Field Force Manager, an LBS that targets dispatchers and workers in the service, repair, distribution, transportation, construction, health care, utilities, and telecom industries. Perhaps 2006 is finally the year that LBS services start to trickle out of the pipe. That's the topic of a session I'll be moderating at the upcoming CTIA conference in Las Vegas, called (bluntly) "Where is the Industry on Location Based Services?" . If you are going to the show, you can join the session on Thursday afternoon, or look me up to chat.
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