The Bloor Perspective: Voice over Palm, outsourcing in finance and DRM trailblazers

The laptop has played a significant part in the explosion of interest in Wi-Fi hotspots. But there's a wider untapped audience that might need high bandwidth mobile connectivity. Laptops require you to sit down, boot up and shut down. Great if you have time but not so easy for an ad hoc stand'n'surf, which is something you might want to do in a wireless workplace as well as a public hotspot - especially if you add voice to wireless data - voice over Wi-Fi.

Palm has recently announced an agreement with VLI, who will provide their Gphone Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) application for the Palm personal digital assistant (PDA). This will allow users of Palm's Wi-Fi enabled Tungsten C to make high quality voice communications over a wireless data network.

VLI's software is compliant with session initiation protocol (SIP). This means Gphone users can connect to online directory services and call regular phones, in addition to SIP compatible IP devices like PCs and internet phones.

VoIP in a public hotspot is unlikely to be the killer app for PDAs but there are many vertical market applications where a laptop is too cumbersome or creates a barrier between professional and client - say between a doctor and a patient - and a smart phone just isn't smart enough. To add a free voice channel to a network of wireless data devices around a factory, hospital or shop could be quite compelling. Not having to wield a separate phone might free a hand too.

Fast wireless networks introduce another idea: remote speech recognition. That's maybe not today but maybe very soon - one company already supplies a wireless VoIP speech recognition application for hospitals. In the meantime when you loiter in range of a public hotspot, and browse data on your handheld device, maybe you could call the office without bringing another device to hand? Especially if there's already a coffee in that hand.

*Lessons from finance sector outsourcing*

Time was when outsourcing comprised shaping the deal, agreeing the commercial elements, developing and agreeing an SLA, shutting the door on the outsourced activity, paying the fees and praying that the financial savings will come.

In the financial services sector the processes have become more lengthy and detailed and, of course, there's an increased cost to this. Given the value and size of some of the current outsourcing transactions perhaps this is unsurprising. Recent outsourcing transactions have run into billions of dollars. Outsourcing spending is estimated to reach almost $350bn worldwide in the financial services sector during the current year. The growing complexity is primarily because of the demand for greater regulatory oversight: "When you outsource, you outsource the function not the management and corporate responsibility." The Board or senior management charged with justifying or approving the transaction are more exacting in their scrutiny of the proposals.

They demand more rigorous oversight of the vendor. Penalties for service failures must be included in the agreements. A series of violations should ultimately result in a contractual default. Conversely, it is important that relationships with the vendor are not hostile, indeed outside parties are often recruited specifically to manage the relationships.

Those who approve the transactions seek a greater understanding of how success or otherwise should be measured. What should the benchmarks be? Finally, it is now mandatory for the outsourcer to have a documented exit strategy in the event that the number of penalties results in a default on the contract. Yes, outsourcing is becoming more complicated, perhaps a refuge for consultants dislodged from other declining areas of the financial services sector.

*SealedMedia and content protection* SealedMedia's recent announcement of its new document security solution, SealedMedia 2.6, was interesting because it highlights that the original expectations of digital rights management (DRM) were flawed. The consumer market for subscriber-based digital content is developing much more slowly than anticipated. Instead, the business market has grasped the issue of protecting its own intellectual property. This is why SealedMedia 2.6 now supports a broader range of document file formats in a single software solution. The result is a comprehensive document security offering for companies seeking to protect confidential corporate information. SealedMedia also announced today two major new customers: the retailer HMV and RHK, a research and advisory firm. SealedMedia enables organisations to digitally secure commercially confidential or valuable content by persistently protecting, controlling and tracking sealed documents throughout their lifecycle, regardless of location. The ability to protect document throughout their lifecycle, and especially after receipt, is critical to all organisations. The SealedMedia solution for document security is made up of three core software components: License Server, Sealer and Unsealer. The License Server is a multi-threaded, high performance server, which stores the document classifications. It maintains the end-user roles and rights that the Unsealer uses to grant or deny access to sealed documents. The Sealer is a desktop application enabling users to define the appropriate security classification for sensitive documents and emails. The Unsealer is a free, shrink-wrapped and easily installable 2.5MB plug-in. End-users can only access sealed content using the Unsealer, subject to the rights they have been assigned. SealedMedia claims its system goes further than just a document security solution. It says that it will help organisations to introduce a document classification and enable auditable policies and procedures that would comply with new legislation such as Sarbanses-Oxley, and satisfy the strictest board and audit committee requirements. Yes but only with the help of partners. An example of the product's potential strength comes with the integration with Documentum's eRooms product. The relationship with Documentum shows how secure and trusted collaboration, particularly when handling sensitive documents, can be realised.

With the introduction of workflow into eRooms a richer logic could be built that should go a significant way to enabling organisations to fully address the requirements that Sarbanes-Oxley places for corporate governance. SealedMedia is not without competitors. Adobe offers some competitive features for PDF and XML documents. Users are able to sign, seal and authenticate using digital signatures. This is great if all you want to do is verify source but it does not prevent of leakage or infringement of intellectual property rights. Microsoft Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM) 9 offers content providers and retailers a flexible platform for the secure distribution of digital media files. Content is protected persistently and various components of the system can be revoked and renewed to maintain the integrity of the platform. AegisDRM is another UK Company claiming a comprehensive solution portfolio. While AegisDRM address most major formats, the problem is that it requires a variety tools. This is where SealedMedia has a significant technical advantage. Protection for all formats is achieved using the same console. SealedMedia was founded in 1999. For some time the company struggled to establish a market for itself. Changes in management and strong venture capital support have led it to the position where it can claim as customers 3i, The Financial Times, Congressional Quarterly and AOL/Time Warner. SealedMedia's delivery route is typically through partners of the calibre of Documentum, Oracle, rBase and Business Systems Group. If the company continues to service these clients and maintain a competitive product development programme there is a good chance that SealedMedia will be successful over the next few years.

Bloor Research is a leading independent analyst organisation in Europe. You can find out more at www.bloor-research.com or by emailing mail@bloor-research.com.