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.            Tomw Communications Pty Ltd - Media Release
              http://www.tomw.net.au/media/20010719.html 

                     MOBILE DATA NEXT TECH WRECK

19 July 2001, Sydney, Australia: The next generation of digital mobile
phone technology could bankrupt application developers, makers and
telcos according to Internet consultant Tom Worthington. A Visiting
Fellow in the Department of Computer Science at the Australian National
University and Director of Tomw Communications Pty Ltd, Mr. Worthington
presented at the Internet World Australia 2001, in Sydney, today.

"Development of high speed third generation mobile telephone technology
has stalled. The Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) has not proved a
commercial success . Next generation 3G phones are planned to be used
for video, an application which has already proved a flop on wired
networks."

As an alternative to unimaginative products from the mobile telephone
companies Mr Worthington half-jokingly suggested children's groupware
may be the killer application for mobile data:

"In the chaos of what is a family dinner there is a loud beeping from
under one of the children. Little Joan pulls out the brightly coloured
wireless kiddy-net PDA she has been sitting on and switches on the
screen. "Mum, Jane says that the soccer training had to be moved and
Thursday was the best day the group calendar could schedule. But can you
sign my screen to tell the teacher it is okay to miss art class?"

Spinoffs from research into making the web accessible to the disabled
can make useful mobile web devices, Worthington claimed:

"New generation of smart wireless web devices can provide a good service
using the existing mobile phone bandwidth and using simple adaptation of
existing web standards. Australian companies can capitalise on research
in this field by Australian academics. The same technology is compatible
with the new Australian standard for interactive digital television. New
products can be quickly developed while major companies around the world
flounder under the billions of dollars in debt they accumulated from
investing in dead-end WAP and 3G technology."

In 1999 Worthington was elected a Fellow of the Australian Computer
Society for his contribution to the development of public Internet
policy. At the Australian National University he is presenting courses
on wireless Internet and web site design using the latest international
standards. In may he presented a free seminar on e-Commerce for Small
Business, sponsored by the Federal Government's Business Entry Point.

Media Enquires: 

TOM WORTHINGTON FACS, Email: tom.worthington@tomw.net.au Tel: 0419 496
150 International: +61 419 496 150 

More details: 
This media release with links to referenced material is available
on-line at: http://www.tomw.net.au/media/20010719.html 

TomW Communications Pty Ltd, PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617, Australia
E-mail: tomw.communications@tomw.net.au Ph: 0419 496150 A.C.N. 088 714
309