Nokia and Vodafone in Java for mobiles push

Nokia and Vodafone have positioned themselves at the forefront of further developing Java for mobile devices, with the ultimate aim being more consistent platforms for developers across various handsets.

Their plans have the blessing of the J2ME Executive Committee and are based on two Java Specification Requests (JSRs), one for lower-end devices (based on CLDC specifications) and another for higher-end phones and smart phones used by professionals (with CDC platform specifications).

Nokia and Vodafone declined to characterise their move as a reaction to Java fragmentation, a criticism that is sometimes levelled at the widely used programming language created by Sun Microsystems.

Paul Davey, strategy relationships executive for Vodafone Group, said: "The underlying issue is device-platform fragmentation. Each device has a different Java implementation and developers have had to rewrite for each different handset. This is not a Java issue but a device-level issue."

Mauri Metsaranta, director of software platforms marketing at Nokia, said: "This will take away uncertainty for developers and device manufacturers. [This type of initiative until now] has not been in place as much as the industry would have wished."

The alliance of these two giants of mobile is widely welcomed by competitors such as Orange, Siemens, Sony Ericsson, T-Mobile and indeed Sun, which the spokesmen insisted does not have to take a lead on all Java developments.

Analysts are also positive about the move. Jessica Figueras, practice leader for telecoms and IT at Ovum, is backing it but has some caveats.

"Clearly the problem with J2ME is that it is very fragmented but that is not for no reason - each player wanted to satisfy their individual needs and the business model for Java allowed that to happen," she told silicon.com.

"But standards by themselves won't do it."

She and others have pointed out that developers need to be better supported, especially by operators. Nokia has done a decent job, Figueras said, but "most manufacturers have been pretty abysmal".

Nokia and Vodafone - which is clearly trying to be more involved with standards, following the lead of vendors such as Microsoft and Nokia - say that the effects of this Java push should be felt by this time next year, in terms of the JSR roadmap, meaning supply of resultant handsets by the fourth quarter of 2005.

Vodafone, with its live! service, and others have had success with Java games on handsets but the latest development is recognition that there has to be a more concerted effort for enterprise applications to be taken to devices, in part to help pay back long-term investments in next-generation networks.