[Palm is to add support for GSM, GPRS, CDPD, CDMA, PDC, and Mobitex. CEO, Carl Yankowski, outlined the company's vision, plans, and directions at the Santa Clara PalmSource 2000 conference this week. ]

PalmSource 2000 Keynote -- Among Yankowski's announcements were the following:

-- A range of new wireless modems and integrated wireless handhelds are coming for the Palm(TM) platform. In 2001, Palm Powered(TM) handhelds will be able to access most of the world's major wireless networks, including CDPD, CDMA, GSM, GPRS, PDC, and Mobitex;

-- Samsung became a new licensee of the Palm OS(R) platform. Samsung is developing a new Palm OS-based smartphone for release in the first half of 2001 (see separate release). With the addition of Samsung, the Palm OS is now supported by several leaders in mobile phones, including Nokia, Motorola, and Kyocera; and

--The Palm Economy Association, which will debut later in the year. Independently elected officers will lead it, and two-way feedback will be facilitated on technical and OS issues. A marketing committee will leverage the power of the platform.

"Customers are voting with their wallets, showing their confidence that we will deliver what we say we will," said Yankowski. "We will work hard with you to ensure that the Palm Economy remains the Palm advantage."

More than 3,000 PalmSource conference attendees use the conference to network with other consumer, web and education developers, licensees, enterprise managers and solution providers, IT managers, VARs and system integrators, as well as key members of the Palm marketing, engineering and executive teams. Additional PalmSource conferences will be held in Europe and Asia Pacific in 2001.

Palm Vision

Yankowski showed a six-part, near-term vision, each part representing larger market opportunities. They are as follows:

-- Personal Information Management (PIM) -- It is Palm's heritage to provide a world-class PIM -- comprising datebook, addresses, to-do lists and memos -- a strength that alone continues to earn customer loyalty.

-- Net PIM -- Palm is taking its world-class PIM to the Internet, leveraging the acquisition of AnyDay.com and creating the MyPalm(TM) portal, which is due to ship in its public beta version by the end of the year. The portal includes wireless e-mail, online calendar synchronization, browsing, web searching, and a rich array of online content and services, all sized for the handheld's screen and delivered quickly to the handheld.

-- Communication Phase 1 -- In 2001, Palm will extend its existing e-mail solutions to include message notification, instant messaging, and seamless access to Exchange e-mail.

-- Communication Phase 2 -- Palm is adding voice -- first via telephony, then incorporating voice as data into the Palm OS. Palm OS 4.0, which Palm shared with developers today, is architected to enable rich Palm OS-based telephony. Kyocera and Handspring already sell Palm OS-based smartphones, and Palm is working with them and Motorola, Nokia, and Samsung to develop next-generation smartphones.

-- Security Phase 1 -- Palm handhelds will be used as passkeys and to perform services associated with a wallet. Possible uses include repositories for a driver's license, passport and credit cards. Palm OS 4.0 includes security enhancements designed to help protect users' data.

-- Security Phase 2 -- As industry infrastructure matures, Palm handhelds will be used as electronic wallets, conducting secure transactions -- payments, corporate transactions, offline banking and customized "me-commerce." VeriFone, one of the world's leaders in secure transaction terminals, already has announced collaboration with Palm toward this end, and Yankowski said more announcements are imminent.

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