ARDIS Announces Wireless Software Developer Program
LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill. — January 4, 1995 — In response to the growing demand from software developers for tools and support to create wireless data applications, ARDIS, the nation's first and largest wireless data communications network, announced the availability of its Wireless Software Developer Program.
The self-supporting program is designed to give software developers everything they need to create ARDIS-capable applications. Included in the program are business and technical information for developing powerful wireless solutions, simple connectivity to the network, air time access to the network, as well as on-line bulletin board support. Most importantly, the program is economical, with a one-time registration fee of just $300.
The program will support the full range of host/server environments, radio modem/computing device configurations and client platforms available on the ARDIS network.
"Our goal is to facilitate the creation of the greatest breadth and depth of solutions for users interested in going wireless," said Rob Euler, vice president of business development at ARDIS. "We want to continue to supplement the variety of solutions available for corporations who want to improve the effectiveness of their various mobile organizations. We are also very excited about the opportunity to create wireless solutions for the mobile professional using Motorola's Envoy(R) and Marco(R) wireless communicators. In addition, we believe we have created a business model that will help developers bring their solutions, once completed, to the market."
Call 800-57-ARDIS to register for the ARDIS Wireless Software Developer Program or to receive more information about the program and order forms. Registered developers will receive:
— A 30-minute video focusing on the economic and development considerations for building an ARDIS-based application solution.
— A base set of documentation on the ARDIS network development environment and the test plans for ARDIS confidence-testing.
— Rights to one predefined dial-up host port on the ARDIS switch, accessible via Sprintnet(R).
— Attendance at the ARDIS Developers' Conferences.
— Subscription to the ARDIS Wireless Developer newsletter, a source of both technical and marketing information for developers.
— Subscription to On the Air, ARDIS' customer newsletter.
In addition, an ARDIS Developers Forum has been established on CompuServe as part of their Wireless Forum. The forum can be accessed by entering "GO ADRIS" at any prompt. ARDIS technical support personnel will access the forum twice daily to answer open questions. It will also provide a vehicle for our various connectivity and device partners to answer developers' questions. This forum will be open to any CompuServe subscriber — providing a source of information for any prospective wireless developer.
Network air time under the program will be billed at standard ARDIS prices. One half of the cumulative amount billed during development will be refunded upon successful completion of ARDIS confidence-testing of the resulting solution. This approach is intended to serve as an incentive for completion of development and to educate the developer on the economics of the ARDIS network service. Attractive demonstration pricing will be available to developers for marketing those solutions that have been successfully confidence-tested with ARDIS.
"ARDIS took the unusual step of asking us what we wanted in the way of developer support from a vendor," said Ford H. Goodman, president of CE Software, developers of QuickMail and Network Scheduler, the leading Macintosh(R) e-mail product and the leading Windows(R) and DOS group calendaring and scheduling product in the market, respectively. "We had already targeted wireless connectivity as a strategic focus for our portfolio of applications, and the ARDIS Wireless Software Developer Program is just what we were looking for."
"Greater proliferation of real end-to-end solutions are needed to stimulate the growth of the wireless data industry," said Bill Ablondi of BIS Strategic Decisions. "The availability of the InfoTAC(R) Messenger, and the Envoy and Marco wireless communicators, followed shortly by several PCMCIA modems, operating on ARDIS represents pieces of that solution equation. Their developer program provides the complement to help solve that equation. ARDIS' service plan pricing and distribution channel strategy are the final components necessary to deliver these solutions to end users. The wireless data industry is primed for an exciting 1995."
ARDIS operates the first and largest nationwide radio data information service enabling in-building and on-street data communications between hand-held terminals and host computers. The ARDIS network serves more than 10,700 cities and towns in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and covers more than 80 percent of the population and 90 percent of the business activity in the U.S. The service enables executives and mobile workers to access their corporate information systems or to communicate instantaneously with their peers from virtually any location.
ARDIS is a registered trademark of ARDIS Company.
Motorola, InfoTAC, Marco and Envoy are registered trademarks of Motorola, Inc.
Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
CONTACT:
Rob Euler of ARDIS, 708-913-4405, or [email protected];
or
Tom Murphy or Amy Davis of Barkley & Evergreen, 913-432-2600, or [email protected]