Next year mobiles are expected to provide access to bank accounts so users can manage transactions in real time. Information can be instantly wiped from missing handsets via a call to trusted service providers in the same way as lost cards are locked now. “From a banking perspective, mobiles offer a new channel and extend the way we interface with customers,” says Simon Pugh, group head, mobile at Mastercard. “NFC implemented on phones emulates our PayPass technology so phones act like cards.”

Incorporating GPS (Global Positioning Systems), mobiles combine maps with search engines making it easy to get around and find places in unfamiliar cities.

Mobile television is happening and sharing personal music or video is spurred by the popularity of sites like Facebook. “There is lots of interest in instantly sharing video with an established community in real or near real time,” explains Christian Granberg, manager, multimedia solutions marketing at HP. “As the quality in phones gets better, people can join business video conferencing sessions from their mobiles.”

Yet handsets and sophisticated applications are only half the story. None of these value added services are possible without the enabling networks and teams of application and content developers.

All mobile operators are developing and rolling out the high-speed broadband networks needed to support multimedia services. They are deploying and upgrading 3G networks using High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), technology to increase speeds and capacity. “Operators are optimising networks; building efficient air interfaces and creating all IP [Internet Protocol], networks to carry multimedia traffic more effectively,” says Mechaly.

Operators face a major challenge because getting reliable indoor 3G coverage is difficult, so calls or data connections may be dropped as people move inside. The answer lies in the new picocells and their smaller femtocell cousins which move 3G networks into buildings and which plug into existing fixed broadband connections. Many companies have already installed picocells in office environments, providing reliable indoor connections for bandwidth hungry mobile services such as video. Femtocells, designed for residential or small office installations, are still being trialled and are not expected to be commercially rolled out until 2009. Eventually femtocells will be incorporated into home communications hubs, bringing the full speed and bandwidth of 3G into houses and turning phones into remote control devices for home equipment.

Acting as mini-base stations, both picocells and femtocells allow operators to put 3G networks where demand is without adding expensive radio masts or base stations. The challenge comes in managing what could be millions of extra mini-base stations as deployments ramp up from corporate offices and public buildings into mass roll-outs to residential buildings.

Although 3G networks are handling current bandwidth demand, operators are looking ahead to the next generation 4G mobile networks which are faster, have more capacity and make it easier and costeffective to design and deliver new services. There is a debate about which of the two systems will dominate. Both are based on the same fundamental technologies and require new network build but Long Term Evolution (LTE), has evolved from existing GSM standards while mobile WiMax has emerged from the computing environment. Both are likely to find a place in delivering 4G capacity and speed and operators will evaluate the business case for each.

Many GSM operators are on the path to LTE but also upgrading networks with HSPA to increase speeds and capacity. An advantage of LTE is that the existing three billion GSM users can roam onto 2, 2.5 and 3G networks using the same handset.

While LTE is fundamentally a software upgrade, it requires significant investment in network platforms, base station equipment and better integrated and automated business processes. Mark Heath, associate for telecoms consultancy Analysys says: “There is recognition that operators haven’t enough money to pour into network development. Some are sharing radio access networks to reduce capital expenditure and speed 3G roll out. HSPA can match DSL [Digital Subscriber Line], speeds but there is still lots to do.”

Originally pushed by computer giant Intel, which aims to launch WiMax enabled internet access tablets this summer, the attraction of mobile WiMax is that it can be incorporated into a wide range of low-cost consumer electronics. Yet WiMax is not compatible withexisting mobile systems or devices and is for now purely a data service: the first applications will be delivered to tablet internet devices and it will be a while before comes to phones.

Few expect WiMax to compete head on with GSM, but trials are taking place. It may find a niche in developing countries but GSM operators attract millions of new subscribers monthly and phones are cheap. However WiMax can be used to provide high-speed wireless internet access to rural and remote areas and there are mobile WiMax networks running in Asia and South America. New operators wanting to get into the mobile market quickly may use WiMAX to avoid the cost of 3G licences.

Times are changing in the fast-moving mobile industry as it shifts into providing value added multimedia services. The lines are blurring as new entrants come in from other sectors and existing players diversify: Apple produced the iPhone; Nokia is moving into the services market with Ovi; Google developed the Android mobile operating system and Microsoft sees opportunities. Such cross-fertilisation is expected to enrich the market and eventually benefit consumers.

Still, few people care about technologies. What they want are easy to use, attractive, business and entertainment mobiles which can fit into pockets. They want fast access to company applications and the internet wherever they are from any device.