Q&A: Nextel exec says users starting small on wireless apps

By Craig Stedman

May 13, 2003 12:00 PM ET

Recommended

(0)

Digg

Twitter

Share/Email

Computerworld - Greg Santoro is vice president of Internet and wireless services at Nextel Communications Inc. in Reston, Va. His duties include managing the rollout of corporate wireless data services that Nextel announced last August. Santoro yesterday spoke with Computerworld about the status of that offering and other issues.
How far along are you in delivering on the wireless data capabilities? The foundation is 100% in place. We've been running a packet data network nationwide for three years, and we continue to augment it. Our [corporate user] support center is up and running, and we've rolled out management tools. One area which continues to grow is applications and services. We started out with just a few applications, primarily in transportation. Now we have over 50 applications that are enterprise-class.
What's still to come? There are a couple things we're working on that I think will help move the dial forward. I'd like to see every [mobile] phone have GPS capabilities. And as you get more phones with integrated two-way messaging capabilities, like our BlackBerry service, or more phones with large color screens, it facilitates device interaction more than [mobile technology] does today. Soon, you'll also see us making announcements of phones with a bar-code scanner and a credit-card reader.


Greg Santoro of Nextel Communications Inc.

Are the economy and tight IT budgets making it hard for you to persuade companies to invest in wireless services? We're delivering a consistent set of new subscribers every quarter -- 400,000 to 500,000 net adds. And in the enterprise space, close to 40% of the customers are signing up for a data service. It sounds funny to say it, but I think the economy is helping us. It's real easy to get these programs going without having to go through a long approval process. Most of the deployments we've been involved in have started with a clearly defined project.
Are most of the projects still small in scope? Last year was lots of little projects. This year, it's a lot of deployments within functional groups. I expect by later this year to see location-aware services and more enterprisewide deployments.
What about the issue of wireless security shortcomings? Is that affecting sales? I would say some of the black eye that wireless has on security has bled over into the more traditional mobile space. But it's very easy to encrypt information within a corporate environment and extend that to the phone -- that's basically extending a VPN to the phones. Wi-Fi, on the other hand, remains a concern.

Recommend Digg Twitter ShareThis

Email Print Send Feedback Reprints

Jump to comments

Mobile/Wireless

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER

Do You Know the 7 Steps to Successful Data Migration?

Approximately 60 percent of data migration projects overrun time or budget, while some fail completely. Download this white paper, "Enhancing Your Chance for Successful Data Migration," to learn the critical steps you need to take to execute a data migration project with minimum cost and risk to your business.

WHITE PAPER

Total Cost of Ownership of Server Computing Vs. PCs

Read the Gartner research note to learn why the TCO of a server-based computing deployment used to deliver all applications to users is around 50% lower than that of an unmanaged desktop deployment.

WHITE PAPER

IDC White Paper: Linux in a Global Recession

Economic downturns have a tendency to accelerate emerging technologies, boost the adoption of effective solutions, and punish solutions that are not cost competitive or that are out of synch with industry trends. This IDC White Paper presents the results of an IDC survey of 330 companies in Western Europe, Asia/Pacific and the Americas that measures the receptiveness to Linux and takes into consideration changing views driven by the disruptive economic environment that businesses face today.

White Papers & Webcasts

Informatica 9 Launch: Transform your Business. Transform your world.

LIVE Nov 10, 2009 12:00 PM ET

Architecting Business Intelligence Applications for Change: The Open Solution

LIVE Nov 12, 2009 02:00 PM ET

Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
Learn how to successfully deploy a WAN optimization solution that is specifically tuned for a mobile environment!

Managing Laptops Outside the Office
Learn how you can reduce costs by tracking mobile computers no matter where they are located.

WAN Application Delivery for Executives
Learn how to simplify server and application administration without creating performance problems for distributed users.

4G Ahead Video Program
Uncover the features and benefits of the two leading 4G technologies for enterprises considering future deployment.

Applying Remote Support Technology for Maximum Impact
Download Now!

Complimentary Webcast: Taking a Strategic Approach to Enterprise Mobility
Download This Webcast Today!

Measuring the Business Impact of Support
This ServiceXRG White Paper explores the importance of quantifying the impact of support on your business.

Lower the Cost and Complexity of a Mobile Workforce through Automation
Download This Resource Now!

Drive Down Enterprise Mobility Costs
Learn to empower your mobile workforce while simplifying mobility management and controlling costs.

Managing Mobility: Improve Data Security, Compliance and Manageability
Download This Resource Now!

All White Papers | All Webcasts