The Open Network: Why Setting Developers Loose on Network-Hosted Resources Is Great

B. Washburn
B. Washburn

Summary Bullets:

  • App developers are business rainmakers; big carriers are consolidating and expanding network-side APIs to recruit them.
  • Upcoming APIs such as network-layer control and call control (including collaboration) will raise the recruitment drive ante.

It’s finally happening: Carriers have long supported open networks, but they are now truly ‘opening’ these networks wide for customers to incorporate with their software.  This is not new to M2M players, or for customers that use carrier e-bonding.  Carriers give M2M developers access to software hooks that let them push data around via SMS, MMS, and even WAP; operators also can provide network-side location-based services.  E-bonding is at the other end of the scale, providing complex, automated connectivity to a carrier’s management interfaces. Continue reading “The Open Network: Why Setting Developers Loose on Network-Hosted Resources Is Great”