Fun and games with mobile e-services HP's Mobile e-Services Bazaar together with Orange Gum delivers e-services fun to 7.5 million subscribers in China 6.1.2002 Wireless technologies have revolutionized the way people work. But today, collaboration between HP and Mobile e-Services Bazaar members like Orange Gum are also changing the way people play. hp mobile e-services bazaar Hp launched the Mobile e-Services Bazaar as a way to help technology innovators realize its vision of a world where e-services, appliances and infrastructure link people on the move. Today, there are nine different Bazaars in technology hubs around the world, including major Asian sites such as China, Singapore and Japan. Through these Bazaars, participants can create new e-services for the mobile and wireless markets. HP Mobile e-Services Bazaars offer members access to innovative HP technologies like HP Application Server and Chai. Hp also provides access to other valuable resources such as sales, marketing, business and technical support and financing programs - even consulting on business modeling - all to help members realize the vision of an e-service-enabled world. the hp bazaar goes online HP's latest Bazaar offerings includes a revamped, expanded Bazaar Web site to enhance networking and access to information. This worldwide initiative provides Bazaar members with a database of other member companies and partners, industry news and information on the latest mobile applications. Bazaar members are also provided with their unique user name and password to constantly update their information. The Web site, currently available in English, will also be offered in another four Asian languages-Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Korean. new mobile test lab Part of the Mobile e-Services Bazaar enablement program includes HP's new HP Mobile Test Lab (MTL), BASED IN Singapore. Open to all HP Mobile e-Services Bazaar members and partners in Asia Pacific, the aim of the MTL is to provide end-to-end solutions for mobile application developers and network operators to develop, port, test, and deploy new wireless applications. The HP MTL hosts a suite of development and test tools for mobile applications that can be accessed online via the Internet. Applications running on various technologies such as 3G, GPRS, i-Mode and WAP can be tested and professionally certified. Using the MTL, members can use content development and testing tools to speed solution development. They can also perform in-depth enterprise deployment testing to ensure their solutions are easy to install and configure in large environments. MTL participants save time and money and create higher-quality applications, while only paying for the tools or services they need. Orange Gum success One of the recent customers to benefit from the tools and services HP provides through the Mobile e-Services Bazaar is Orange Gum. Headquartered in Singapore, Orange Gum's vision is to be a premier supplier of value added entertainment services and related services, as well as infrastructure and other platform solutions to mobile carriers. Current product offerings include SMS-, Internet-and wireless-based entertainment content and services for mobile phone subscribers. Currently, Orange Gum offers logo downloads for character icons related to their wireless games, such as Kungfu Boy and Mutant War, as well as characters and ringtones from their content partners such as Bandai Networks, Namco and Taito. Other entertainment products include chatting services such as Friendship Club, multiplayer battle games such as Happy Bomb, and Water Bomb, nurturing games such as Great Pal, and dating games such as SMS Lover. Innovative entertainment products like these are the reason Orange Gum has built a significant market presence in countries around Asia, including Taiwan and China. Together with Mobile e-Services Bazaar members Newpalm and HP, Orange Gum recently announced the launch of Asia's first SMS interactive entertainment services in China. Brand named eZhangWanBa (ePalm Game King), these services are part of a package of new mobile solutions that are being offered through China Mobile, Mainland China's largest mobile carrier. Initial services under eZhangWanBa include popular Chinese language games like Great Pals, Mindmapper, Carter, Friendship Club, Happy Bomb, Zoojampa and Water Boy. To access eZhangWanBa, users simply send an SMS message containing the word °&Mac176;GAME°± to a special service number. A two-way communication between the back-end server and the end-user is set up, enabling the interactive element in the SMS gaming services. Not only can end-users select from a variety of games to play, they can also directly interact and communicate using their mobile phones with gamers from other parts of the world accessing similar services, any time anywhere. the value of collaboration These innovative new services have been jointly developed by Orange Gum and Newpalm, a leading mobile Internet technology and application services provider based in China, using middleware developed by both companies on the HP platform, which supports mission-critical mobile services. This valuable technology collaboration helped Orange Gum to become the first company to offer Chinese-language SMS interactive entertainment services in China. The successful launch of eZhangWanBa exemplifies the kind of innovation that the HP Mobile e-Services Bazaar has helped to create. Commenting on this alliance, Mr Kelvin Tan, Director, HP Mobile e-Services Bazaar, Asia Pacific, said, "Orange Gum and Newpalm were two of the first Bazaar members to join the Asia Pacific HP Bazaar program. The program has paid off in bridging wireless technologies and business. This value proposition has led to the delivery of commercialized applications to key mobile carriers in the region." Said Mr. Tan Meng Wee, President of Orange Gum, "We are very excited to work with Newpalm and HP in China. There is great potential for entertainment services to succeed in new mobile markets such as China and we will continue working through HP's extensive network to extend our SMS and WAP services to regional carriers like China Mobile." business expansion In conjunction with the announcement of the new MTL, HP also recently announced that Orange Gum has been selected as one of four Singapore-based companies to interact with Japanese Bazaar members for joint business opportunities. This is the latest development in the Overseas Business Centre collaboration between HP Singapore and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), to export successful local applications to Japan and import Japanese technologies into Singapore. HP will help the companies expand in the Japanese market by providing access to HP's Japan lab facilities as well as sponsoring and enabling joint marketing activities and business development efforts. These include assistance with potential leads, referrals or strategic alliances with HP's Japanese business and technology participants. Through the Mobile e-Services Bazaar, the Mobile Test Lab, and members like Orange Gum, HP is helping business realize its vision of helping the world work together, and play together, in a truly e-service enabled world. Originally published in HP's "inview" magazine (June 2002 Asia Pacific edition)