- NIILM University

ENGINEERING
ART
CHEMISTRY
MECHANICS
PHYSICS
history
psychology
Electronic Governance
LANGUAGE
BIOTECHNOLOGY
E
C
O
L
O
G
Y
MUSIC
EDUCATION
GEOGRAPHY
agriculture
law
DESIGN
mathematics
MEDIA
management
HEALTH
CONTENTS
Chapter 1 : History
Chapter 2 : E-Government by country
Chapter 3 : E-Government- an alternate approach
Chapter 4 : National partnership for Rein venting government
Chapter 5 : Government to business
Chapter 6 : Automobile navigation
Chapter 7 : Short Message service
Chapter : 8 Technical details
Chapter : 9 Multimedia messaging service
Chapter : 10 Bluetooth
Chapter : 11 List of application
Chapter : 12 References
1
Chapter-1
History
E-Governance
Several dimension and factors influence the definition of e-Governance. The word ―electronic‖
in the term e-Governance implies technology driven governance. E-Governance is the
application ofinformation and communication technology (ICT) for delivering government
services, exchange of information communication transactions, integration of various standalone
systems
and
services
between
Government-to-Citizens
(G2C), Government-to-
Business(G2B),Government-to-Government( G2G) as well as back office processes and
interactions within the entire government frame work. Through the e-Governance, the
government services will be made available to the citizens in a convenient, efficient and
transparent manner. The three main target groups that can be distinguished in governance
concepts are Government, citizens and businesses/interest groups. In eGovernance there are no
distinct boundaries.
Generally four basic models are available-Government to Customer (Citizen), Government to
Employees, Government to Government and Government to Business.
Difference between e-governance and e-government
Both the terms are treated to be the same, however, there is some difference between the two.
"E-government" is the use of the ICTs in public administrations- combined with organisational
change and new skills- to improve public services and democratic processes and to strengthen
support to public". The problem in this definition to be congruence definition of e-governance is
that there is no provision for governance of ICTs. As a matter of fact, the governance of ICTs
requires most probably a substantial increase in regulation and policy- making capabilities,with
all the expertise and opinion-shaping processes among the various social stakeholders of these
concerns. So, the perspective of the e-governance is "the use of the technologies that both help
governing and have to be governed".
E-Governance is the future, many countries are looking forward to for a corruption free
government. E-government is one-waycommunication protocol whereas E-governance is twoway communication protocol. The essence of E-governance is to reach the beneficiary and
2
ensure that the services intended to reach the desired individual has been met with. There should
be an auto-response system to support the essence of E-governance, whereby the Government
realizes the efficacy of its governance. E-governance is by the governed, for the governed and of
the governed.
Establishing the identity of the end beneficiary is a true challenge in all citizen-centric services.
Statistical information published by governments and world bodies do not always reveal the
facts. Best form of E-governance cuts down on unwanted interference of too many layers while
delivering governmental services. It depends on good infrastructural setup with the support of
local
processes and
parameters for
governments
to
reach their citizens
or end
beneficiaries. Budget for planning, development and growth can be derived from well laid out Egovernance systems
Defining e-Government
‗E-Gov Strategies' (or Digital Government) is defined as ‗The employment of the Internet and
the world-wide-web for delivering government information and services to the citizens.‘ (United
Nations, 2006; AOEMA, 2005).
'Electronic Government' (or in short 'e-Government') essentially refers to ‗The utilization of
Information Technology (IT), Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), and other
web-based telecommunication technologies to improve and/or enhance on the efficiency and
effectiveness of service delivery in the public sector.‘ (Jeong, 2007).
E-government describes the use of technologies to facilitate the operation of government and the
dispersement of government information and services. E-government, short for electronic
government, deals heavily with Internet and non-internet applications to aid in governments. Egovernment includes the use of electronics in government as large-scale as the use of telephones
and fax machines, as well as surveillance systems, tracking systems such as RFID tags, and even
the use of television and radios to provide government-related information and services to the
citizens.
Examples of e-Government and e-Governance
E-Government should enable anyone visiting a city website to communicate and interact with
city employees via the Internet with graphical user interfaces (GUI), instant-messaging (IM),
3
audio/video presentations, and in any way more sophisticated than a simple email letter to the
address provided at the site and ―the use of technology to enhance the access to and delivery of
government services to benefit citizens, business partners and employees. The focus should be
on:
The use of Information and communication technologies, and particularly the Internet, as a
tool to achieve better government.
The use of information and communication technologies in all facets of the operations of a
government organization.
The continuous optimization of service delivery, constituency participation and governance
by transforming internal and external relationships through technology, the Internet and new
media.[8]
Whilst e-Government has traditionally been understood as being centered around the operations
of government, e-Governance is understood to extend the scope by including citizen engagement
and participation in governance. As such, following in line with the OECD definition of eGovernment, e-Governance can be defined as the use of ICTs as a tool to achieve better
governance.
Delivery models and activities of e-Government
The primary delivery models of e-Government can be divided into:
Government-to-Citizen or Government-to-Consumer (G2C)
In this model, the G2C model apply the strategy of Customer Relationship Management
(CRM) with business concept.
By managing their customer (citizen) relationship, the business (government) can
provide the needed products and services fulfill the needs from customer (citizen).
In United States, the NPR (National Partnership for Reinventing Government) has been
implemented from 1993.
Government-to-Business (G2B)
Government-to-Government (G2G)
Government-to-Employees (G2E)
4
Within each of these interaction domains, four kinds of activities take place:
pushing information over the Internet, e.g.: regulatory services, general holidays, public
hearing schedules, issue briefs, notifications, etc.
two-way communications between the agency and the citizen, a business, or another
government agency. In this model, users can engage in dialogue with agencies and post
problems, comments, or requests to the agency.
conducting transactions, e.g.: lodging tax returns, applying for services and grants.
governance, e.g.: To enable the citizen transition from passive information access to active
citizen participation by:
1. Informing the citizen
2. Representing the citizen
3. Encouraging the citizen to vote
4. Consulting the citizen
5. Involving the citizen
Non-internet e-Government
While e-government is often thought of as "online government" or "Internet-based government,"
many non-Internet "electronic government" technologies can be used in this context. Some nonInternet forms include telephone, fax, PDA, SMS text messaging,MMS, wireless networks and
services, Bluetooth, CCTV,
tracking
systems, RFID, biometric identification,
road
traffic
management and regulatory enforcement, identity cards, smart cards and other Near Field
Communication applications; polling station technology (where non-online e-voting is being
considered), TV and radio-based delivery of government services (e.g., CSMW), email, online
community facilities, newsgroups and electronic
messaging technologies.
5
mailing
lists, online
chat,
and instant
Controversies of e-Government
Disadvantages
The main disadvantages concerning e-government is the lack of equality in public access to the
internet, reliability of information on the web, and hidden agendas of government groups that
could influence and bias public opinions.
There are many considerations and potential implications of implementing and designing egovernment, including disintermediation of the government and its citizens, impacts on
economic, social, and political factors, vulnerability to cyber attacks, and disturbances to
the status quo in these areas. See also Electronic leviathan.
Hyper-surveillance
Increased contact between government and its citizens goes both ways. Once e-government
begins to develop and become more sophisticated, citizens will be forced to interact
electronically with the government on a larger scale. This could potentially lead to a lack of
privacy for civilians as their government obtains more and more information on them. In a worst
case scenario, with so much information being passed electronically between government and
civilians, a totalitarian-like system could develop. When the government has easy access to
countless information on its citizens, personal privacy is lost.
Cost
Although "a prodigious amount of money has been spent" on the development and
implementation of e-government, some say it has yielded only a mediocre product. The
outcomes and effects of trial Internet-based governments are often difficult to gauge or
unsatisfactory. According to Gartner, Worldwide IT spending is estimated to total $3.6 trillion in
2011 which is 5.1% increase from the year 2010 ($3.4 trillion).
Inaccessibility
An e-government site that provides web access and support often does not offer the "potential to
reach many users including those who live in remote areas, are homebound, have low literacy
levels, exist on poverty line incomes.
6
False sense of transparency and accountability
Opponents of e-government argue that online governmental transparency is dubious because it is
maintained by the governments themselves. Information can be added or removed from the
public eye. To this day, very few organizations monitor and provide accountability for these
modifications. Those that do so, like the United States‘ OMBWatch and Government
Accountability Project, are often nonprofit volunteers. Even the governments themselves do not
always keep track of the information they insert and delete.
Advantages
The ultimate goal of the E-Government is to be able to offer an increased portfolio of public
services to citizens in an efficient and cost effective manner. E-government allows for
government transparency. Government transparency is important because it allows the public to
be informed about what the government is working on as well as the policies they are trying to
implement. Simple tasks may be easier to perform through electronic government access. Many
changes, such as marital status or address changes can be a long process and take a lot of paper
work for citizens. E-government allows these tasks to be performed efficiently with more
convenience to individuals. E-government is an easy way for the public to be more involved in
political campaigns. It could increase voter awareness, which could lead to an increase in citizen
participation in elections. It is convenient and cost-effective for businesses, and the public
benefits by getting easy access to the most current information available without having to spend
time, energy and money to get it.
E-government helps simplify processes and makes access to government information more easily
accessible for public sector agencies and citizens. For example, the Indiana Bureau of Motor
Vehicles simplified the process of certifying driver records to be admitted in county court
proceedings. Indiana became the first state to allow government records to be digitally signed,
legally certified and delivered electronically by using Electronic Postmark technology. In
addition to its simplicity, e-democracy services can reduce costs. Alabama Department of
Conservation & Natural Resources, Wal-Mart and NIC developed an online hunting and fishing
license service utilizing an existing computer to automate the licensing process. More than
140,000 licenses were purchased atWal-Mart stores during the first hunting season and the
agency estimates it will save $200,000 annually from service.
7
The anticipated benefits of e-government include efficiency, improved services, better
accessibility of public services, and more transparency and accountability.
8
Chapter-2
Democratization
One goal of e-government will be greater citizen participation. Through the internet, people from
all over the country can interact with politicians or public servants and make their voices
heard. Blogging and interactive surveys will allow politicians or public servants to see the views
of the people they represent on any given issue. Chat rooms can place citizens in real-time
contact with elected officials, their offices or provide them with the means to replace them by
interacting directly with public servants, allowing voters to have a direct impact and influence in
their government. These technologies can create a more transparent government, allowing voters
to immediately see how and why their representation in the capital is voting the way they are.
This helps voters better decide who to vote for in the future or how to help the public servants
become more productive. A government could theoretically move more towards a
truedemocracy with the proper application of e-government. Government transparency will give
insight to the public on how decisions are made and hold elected officials or public servants
accountable for their actions. The public could become a direct and prominent influence in
government legislature to some degree.
Environmental bonuses
Proponents of e-government argue that online government services would lessen the need for
hard copy forms. Due to recent pressures from environmentalist groups, the media, and the
public, some governments and organizations have turned to the Internet to reduce this paper use.
The United States government utilizes the website http://www.forms.gov to provide ―internal
government forms for federal employees‖ and thus ―produce significant savings in paper.
Speed, efficiency, and convenience
E-government allows citizens to interact with computers to achieve objectives at any time and
any location, and eliminates the necessity for physical travel to government agents sitting behind
desks and windows. Improved accounting and record keeping can be noted through
computerization, and information and forms can be easily accessed, equaling quicker processing
time. On the administrative side, access to help find or retrieve files and linked information can
now be stored in databases versus hardcopies stored in various locations. Individuals with
9
disabilities or conditions no longer have to be mobile to be active in government and can be in
the comfort of their own homes.
Public approval
Recent trials of e-government have been met with acceptance and eagerness from the
public. Citizens participate in online discussions of political issues with increasing frequency,
and young people, who traditionally display minimal interest in government affairs, are drawn
to e-voting procedures.
Although internet-based governmental programs have been criticized for lack of reliable privacy
policies, studies have shown that people value prosecution of offenders over personal
confidentiality. Ninety percent of United States adults approve of Internet tracking systems of
criminals, and 57% are willing to forgo some of their personal internet privacy if it leads to the
prosecution of criminals or terrorists.
Technology-specific e-Government
There are also some technology-specific sub-categories of e-government, such as mgovernment (mobile government), u-government (ubiquitous government), and g-government
(GIS/GPS applications for e-government.
E-government portals and platforms The primary delivery models of e-Government are classified
depending on who benefits. In the development of public sector or private sector portals and
platforms, a system is created that benefits all constituents. Citizens needing to renew their
vehicle registration have a convenient way to accomplish it while already engaged in meeting the
regulatory inspection requirement. On behalf of a government partner, business provides what
has traditionally, and solely, managed by government and can use this service to generate profit
or attract new customers. Government agencies are relieved of the cost and complexity of having
to process the transactions.
To develop these public sector portals or platforms, governments have the choice to internally
develop and manage, outsource, or sign a self-funding contract. The self-funding model creates
portals that pay for themselves through convenience fees for certain e-government transactions,
known as self-funding portals.
10
Social networking services are an emerging area for e-democracy. The social networking entry
point is within the citizens‘ environment and the engagement is on the citizens‘ terms.
Proponents of e-government perceive government use of social networking as a medium to help
government act more like the public it serves. Examples can be found at almost every state
government portal throughFacebook, Twitter, and YouTube widgets.
Government and its agents also have the opportunity to follow citizens to monitor satisfaction
with services they receive. Through ListServs, RSS feeds, mobile messaging, micro-blogging
services and blogs, government and its agencies can share information to citizens who share
common interests and concerns. Government is also beginning to Twitter. In the state of Rhode
Island, TreasurerFrank T. Caprio is offering daily tweets of the state‘s cash flow. Interested
people can sign up at here. For a full list of state agencies with Twitter feeds, visit NIC. For more
information, visit transparent-gov.com.
N e-Government Readiness Index
There are several international rankings of e-government maturity. The Eurostat rankings,
Economist, Brown University, and the UN e-Government Readiness Index are among the most
frequently cited. The United Nations Public Administration Network conducts a bi-annual eGovernment survey which includes a section titled e-Government Readiness. It is a comparative
ranking of the countries of the world according to two primary indicators: i) the state of egovernment readiness; and ii) the extent of e-participation. Constructing a model for the
measurement of digitized services, the Survey assesses the 191 member states of the UN
according to a quantitative composite index of e-government readiness based on website
assessment; telecommunication infrastructure and human resource endowment.
11
The following is the list of the top 50 countries according to the UN's 2012 e-Government
Readiness Index.
Rank
Country
Index
1
South Korea
0.9283
2
Netherlands
0.9125
3
United Kingdom
0.8960
4
Denmark
0.8889
5
United States
0.8687
6
France
0.8635
7
Sweden
0.8599
8
Norway
0.8593
9
Finland
0.8505
10
Singapore
0.8474
12
Rank
Country
Index
11
Canada
0.8430
12
Australia
0.8390
13
New Zealand
0.8381
14
Liechtenstein
0.8264
15
Switzerland
0.8134
16
Israel
0.8100
17
Germany
0.8079
18
Japan
0.8019
19
Luxembourg
0.8014
20
Estonia
0.7987
21
Austria
0.7840
13
Rank
Country
Index
22
Iceland
0.7835
23
Spain
0.7770
24
Belgium
0.7718
25
Slovenia
0.7492
26
Monaco
0.7468
27
United Arab Emirates 0.7344
28
Lithuania
0.7333
29
Croatia
0.7328
30
Hungary
0.7208
31
Italy
0.7190
32
Portugal
0.7165
14
Rank
Country
Index
33
Ireland
0.7194
34
Malta
0.7131
35
Bahrain
0.6946
36
Greece
0.6872
37
Kazakhstan
0.6844
38
Chile
0.6769
39
Malaysia
0.6703
40
Saudi Arabia
0.6658
41
Latvia
0.6604
42
Colombia
0.6572
43
Barbados
0.6566
15
Rank
Country
Index
44
Cyprus
0.6508
45
Czech Republic
0.6491
46
Poland
0.6441
47
Qatar
0.6405
48
Antigua and Barbuda 0.6345
49
Russian Federation
0.6315
50
Uruguay
0.6315
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Chapter-3
E-Government By Country
In Africa
As the rest of the world keeps embracing the benefits of e-government, Africa has of late shown
significant milestones in developing similar electronic government platforms. There are various
countries that has shown progress in the recent years:
In Kenya
The transition period from the KANU government to the NARC government(December 2002),
marked the full realization of the e-government aspect, as the nation was set to tap the great
potential of ICT-in service delivery to its subjects .Nonetheless,it was in January 2004 when,
after the executive (cabinet) session, that a Directorate of e-government was established.The
newly created department had the duty to draw the plan of action; for future ICT
implementations.
Like many other African nations, Kenya has embraced the high mobile penetration rate within its
population.This is attributed to the ubiquity aspect, that is provided by mobile phones-such that
even people living in remote areas that could not be having the traditional telecommunications'
networks, they can now communicate with ease.It is noted that this has a great impact on the
governments' strategies in reaching out to its citizens. Given that about 70% of the population
owns mobile phones, leading mobile network operators like Safaricom have taken a great step in
offering services that meets citizens' demands. Such services include Kipokezi service(that
allows subscribers to do online chatting and also exchange electronic mails via standard mobile
phones)-and then M-Pesa; the mobile bank(that allows the subscribers to send and receive
electronic cash). This has even appealed to the majority of Kenyans, as it supports the branchless
members of the society too, in doing normal and secure businesses via M-Pesa. The
recent IMF report reveals that MPESA transactions in Kenya exceeded those carried out by
Western Union worldwide.
17
In Asia
In Bangladesh
eGovernment web portal has been developed to provide more convenient access to various
government service and information through one window
In India
In India, the e-Governance initiatives are broadly managed under the umbrella of
the NeGP initiative.
In Malaysia
In Malaysia, the e-Government efforts are undertaken by the Malaysian government, under the
umbrella of Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) and e-Government flagships, which was
launched in mid-1996, by Dr Mahathir Mohamad (1981-2003), by the then Prime Minister of
Malaysia (Jeong & Nor Fadzlina, 2007).
Electronic government is an initiative aimed at reinventing how the government works. It seeks
to improve both how the government operates, as well as how it deliver services to the people
(Ibrahim Ariff & Goh Chen Chuan, 2000).
In Pakistan
In Pakistan, the Government of Pakistan's e-government directorate is committed to building a
robust e-network framework that essentially allows the government to be more responsive in
delivering public services to citizens and businesses.
In Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka have taken some initiative actions to provide the benefits of e-Government to the
citizens.
In Europe
eGovernment shows significant advancement in Europe. For more information see eGovernment
in Europe.
18
In Russia
On the Federal Law «On providing state and municipal services» (2010), the strategy on
development of Information Society in the Russian Federation, approved by the President
(2008), the Federal target programme «Electronic Russia» (2002 – 2010 years), approved by the
Government (2002), the State Programme «Information Society» (2010), the Procedure on
development and approval of administrative regulations execution of public functions (public
services), approved by the Government (2005), the concept of administrative reform in the
Russian Federation in 2006 - 2010 respectively, approved by the Government (2005),on other
orders, resolutions and acts in the Russian Federation was created electronic government (or egovernment).
The main target on creating of e-government lies in the field of providing the equal opportunities
for all the Russians in spite of their living place and their incomes and make more effective
system of public administration. So e-government are created for reaching the useful system of
public management accommodating the individual interests of every citizen by participation
through ICTs in public policy-making.
Nowadays Russian e-government includes such systems as
1. The united interagency Interacting system using for providing of state and municipal services,
exchange of information and data between participants of interagency interacting, quick approval
of state and municipal decisions, etc.
2. The united system for authentication and authorization providing evidence of the rights of all
participants of e-government.
3. United portal of state and municipal services and functions which is the «single window» for
all information and services assured by government and municipals.
The portal of public services is one of the key elements of the project to create «electronic
government» in the country. The portal provides a single point of access to all references on state
and municipal services through the Internet and provides citizens and organizations the
opportunity to receive these services electronically. Monthly visits by users of the public services
portal range between 200,000 and 700,000. For example, citizens are now able to get or
exchange a driver license through this portal.
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4. Head system providing utilization of electronic signature.
Other systems located on cloud services.
Today Russian e-government elements are demanded in the spheres of e-governance, e-services
(e-health, e-education, e-library, etc.), e-commerce, e-democracy (web-election, Russian public
initiative). By the United Nations E-Government Survey 2012: E-Government for the People
Russia became one of the 7 emerging leaders in e-government development, took 9th place in
rating of e-government development in largest population countries, took 8th rank in Top eparticipation leaders, after Norway, Sweden and Chile, Advancing 32 positions in the world
rankings, the Russian Federation became the leader of e-government in Eastern Europe.
Evolution of ICT in the Russian Federation provided the raising of Russia in E-government
development index to the 27 place.
In the Middle East
In the United Arab Emirates, the Emirates eGovernment is designed for e-government
operations. The e-Government was also established in Saudi Arabia, and it offers online
government services and transactions.
In North America
In Canada
The current Clerk of the Privy Council – the head of the federal public service, has made
workplace renewal a pillar of overall public service renewal. Key to workplace renewal is the
adoption of collaborative networked tools. An example of such as tool is GCPEDIA – a wiki
platform for federal public servants. Other tools include GCconnex, a social networking tool, and
GCforums, a discussion board system.
In the United States
The election of Barack Obama as President of the United States has become associated with the
effective use of Internet technologies during his campaign, and in the implementation of his new
government in 2009.
On January 21, 2009, newly elected President Obama signed one of his first memorandums –
the Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies on Transparency and
Open GovernmentIn the memo, President Obama called for an unprecedented level of openness
20
in Government, asking agencies to "ensure the public trust and establish a system of
transparency, public participation, and collaboration. The memo further "directs the Chief
Technology Officer, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) and the Administrator of General Services (GSA), to coordinate the development by
appropriate executive departments and agencies [and] to take specific actions implementing the
principles set forth in the memorandum.
President Obama‘s memorandum centered around the idea of increasing transparency throughout
various different federal departments and agencies. By enabling public websites like
recovery.gov and data.gov to distribute more information to the American population, the
administration believes that it will gain greater citizen participation.
Recently[ this initiative has crossed several key milestones and continues to make a significant
amount of progress. Certain government information is still[ and will continue to be, considered
privileged, and this issue remains at the center of the debate.
Additionally, technology is still not accessible by all Americans. The National Broadband
Plan hopes to counter this limit, but many Americans are still without access to internet, which
would be required to use these services. Some Americans live in rural areas without access,
while others are not financially able to support a connection.
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Chapter-4
E-Government – An Alternative Approach
Recent government policy updates have seen a shift away from e-Government towards a much
more radical focus on transforming the whole relationship between the public sector and users of
public services. This new approach is referred to as Transformational Government
Transformation programs differ from traditional e-Government programs in four major ways:
They take a whole-of-government view of the relationship between the public sector and the
citizen or business user.
They include initiatives to e-enable the frontline public services: that is, staff involved in
direct personal delivery of services such as education and healthcare – rather than just
looking at transactional services which can be e-enabled on an end-to-end basis.
They take a whole-of-government view of the most efficient way managing the cost base of
government.
They focus on the "citizen" not the "customer". That is, they seek to engage with the citizens
as owners of and participants in the creation of public services, not as passive recipients of
services.
Information and communications technology
Information and communications technology (ICT) is often used as an extended synonym
for information technology (IT), but is a more specific term that stresses the role of unified
communications and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless
signals), computers as well as necessary enterprise software, middleware, storage, and audiovisual systems, which enable users to access, store, transmit, and manipulate information.
The phrase ICT had been used by academic researchers since the 1980s, but it became popular
after it was used in a report to the UK government by Dennis Stevenson in 1997and in the
revised National Curriculum for England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 2000. As of September
2013, the term "ICT" in the UK National Curriculum has been replaced by the broader term
"computing"
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The term ICT is now also used to refer to the convergence of audio-visual and telephone
networks with computer networks through a single cabling or link system. There are large
economic incentives (huge cost savings due to elimination of the telephone network) to merge
the audio-visual, building management and telephone network with the computer network
system using a single unified system of cabling, signal distribution and management.
The term Infocommunications is sometimes used interchangeably with ICT. In fact
Infocommunications is the expansion oftelecommunications with information processing and
content handling functions on a common digital technology base. For a comparison of these and
other terms, see. The ICT Development Index compares the level of ICT use and access across
the world.
Global Costs of IT
The total money spent on IT worldwide has been most recently estimated as US $3.5 trillion, and
is currently growing at 5% p.a. – doubling every 15 years. IT costs, as a percentage of corporate
revenue, have grown 50% since 2002, putting a strain on IT budgets. Today, when looking at
companies‘ IT budgets, 75% are recurrent costs, used to ―keep the lights on‖ in the IT
department, and 25% are cost of new initiatives for technology development.
The average IT budget has the following breakdown 31% – personnel costs (internal) 29% –
software costs (external/purchasing category) 26% – hardware costs (external/purchasing
category) 14% – costs of external service providers (external/services)
The WSIS Process and the stocktaking process
On 21 December 2001, the United Nations General Assembly by approving Resolution 56/183
endorsed the holding of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) to discuss on
information society opportunities and challenges. According to this resolution, the General
Assembly related the Summit to the United Nations Millennium Declaration to implement ICT
to facilitate achieving Millennium Development Goals. It also emphasize on the multistakeholder
approach to use all stakeholders including civil society and private sector beside the
governments. The resolution gave ITU the leading managerial role to organize the event in
cooperation with other UN bodies as well as the other international organizations and the host
countries and recommended that preparations for the Summit take place through an open-ended
23
intergovernmental Preparatory Committee – or PrepCom – that would define the agenda of the
Summit, decide on the modalities of the participation of other stakeholders, and finalize both the
draft Declaration of Principles and the draft Plan of Action.
In 2003 at Geneva, delegates from 175 countries took part in the first phase of WSIS where they
adopted a Declaration of Principles. This is a road map for achieving an information society
accessible to all and based on shared knowledge. A Plan of Action sets out a goal of bringing 50
percent of the world's population online by 2015.
The second phase took place from November 16 through 18, 2005, in Tunis, Tunisia. It resulted
in agreement on the Tunis Commitmentand the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society, and
the creation of the Internet Governance Forum.
The WSIS Stocktaking Process
The WSIS Stocktaking Process is a follow-up to WSIS. Its purpose is to provide a register of
activities carried out by governments, international organizations, the business sector, civil
society and other entities, in order to highlight the progress made since that landmark event.
Following § 120 of TAIS, ITU has been maintaining the WSIS Stocktaking database as a
publicly accessible system providing information on ICT-related initiatives and projects with
reference to the 11 WSIS Action Lines.
Furthermore, regular reporting on WSIS Stocktaking is the outcome of the Tunis phase of the
Summit, which was launched in order to serve as a tool for assisting with the WSIS follow-up.
The purpose of the regular reports is to update stakeholders on the various activities related to the
11 Action Lines identified in the Geneva Plan of Action, that was approved during First Phase of
the WSIS.
The WSIS+10 High-Level Event will be held from 13 to 17 April 2014 in Sharm el-Sheikh. This
event will be an extended version of the WSIS Forum. It is designed to review the progress made
in the implementation of the WSIS outcomes under the mandates of participating agencies, and
to take stock of achievements in the last 10 years based on reports of WSIS Stakeholders,
including those submitted by countries, Action Line Facilitators and other stakeholders. The
event will review the WSIS Outcomes (2003 and 2005) related to the WSIS Action Lines with
the view of developing proposals on a new vision beyond 2015, potentially including new
24
targets. This process will take into account the decisions of the 68th Session of the UN General
Assembly.
Open Consultation Process The Open Consultation Process is an open and inclusive consultation
among WSIS Stakeholders (governments, private sector, civil society, international organizations
and relevant regional organizations) focused on developing multistakeholder consensus on two
draft Outcome Documents, the thematic aspects, and innovations on the format of the Event.
WSIS + 10
The WSIS+10 High-Level Event will be held from 13 to 17 April 2014 in Sharm el-Sheikh. This
event will be an extended version of the WSIS Forum. It is designed to review the progress made
in the implementation of the WSIS outcomes under the mandates of participating agencies, and
to take stock of achievements in the last 10 years based on reports of WSIS Stakeholders,
including those submitted by countries, Action Line Facilitators and other stakeholders. The
event will review the WSIS Outcomes (2003 and 2005) related to the WSIS Action Lines with
the view of developing proposals on a new vision beyond 2015, potentially including new
targets. This process will take into account the decisions of the 68th Session of the UN General
Assembly.
Open Consultation Process
The Open Consultation Process is an open and inclusive consultation among WSIS Stakeholders
(governments, private sector, civil society, international organizations and relevant regional
organizations) focused on developing multistakeholder consensus on two draft Outcome
Documents, the thematic aspects, and innovations on the format of the Event.
WSIS PROJECT PRIZES 2014
The WSIS Project Prizes 2014 contest provides a platform to identify and showcase success
stories and models that could be easily replicated; empower communities at the local level; give
a chance to all stakeholders working on WSIS to participate in the contest, and particularly
recognize the efforts of stakeholders for their added value to the society and commitment
towards achieving WSIS goals.
Apllications can be submitted for the contest of WSIS Project Prizes 2014 until 1 November
2013.
25
The contest of WSIS Project Prizes 2014 is organized into four phases to be held from 5
September 2013 until 13 April 2014. On the latter date 18 winners of WSIS Project Prizes will
be honored, recognized and presented with an award during WSIS Project Prizes 2014 Ceremony
at the WSIS+10 High-Level Event.
26
Chapter-5
National Partnership For Reinventing Government
The National
Partnership
for
Reinventing
Government (NPR),
originally
the National
Performance Review, was an interagency task force to reform the way the United States federal
government works in the Clinton Administration.
The NPR was created on March 3, 1993. It was the eleventh federal reform effort in the 20th
century.
In early 1998, the National Performance Review was renamed to the National Partnership for
Reinventing Government
Morley Winograd was appointed as the Senior Policy Advisor to Vice President Al Gore and
Director of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government in December 1997
History
The NPR was the Clinton-Gore Administration's interagency task force to reform and streamline
the way the United States federal government functions. It was the eleventh federal reform effort
in the twentieth century
The creation of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government was announced during
U.S. President Bill Clinton's address on March 3, 1993 to a special joint session of the United
States CongressThis initiative was a reinvention of an effort formerly known as the National
Performance Review, and consisted of a proposed six-month efficiency review of the federal
government spearheaded by U.S. Vice President Al Gore. The aim for the initiative was to create
a government that ―works better, costs less, and gets results Americans care about. However,
Vice President Gore went beyond preparing a report to lead an effort that evolved into the
longest-running and , arguably, most successful reform effort in U.S. history to date.
In the address to a joint session of Congress on March 3, 1993, President Clinton provided
rationale for implementing the NPR: ―The conditions which brought us as a nation to this point
are well known. Two decades of low productivity growth and stagnant wages, persistent
unemployment and underemployment, years of huge government and declining investment in
our future, exploding health care costs, and lack of coverage for millions of Americans, legions
27
of poor children, education and job training opportunities inadequate to the demands of this
tough global economy.
The stated intention of the NPR was to ―invent government that puts people first, by: serving its
customers, empowering its employees, and fostering excellence.‖ In order to achieve this, the
objectives of the NPR were to ―create a clear sense of mission; delegate authority and
responsibility; replace regulations with incentives; develop budget-based outcomes; and measure
[our] success by customer satisfaction.‖
Clinton‘s address on March 3 was a call to arms aimed at both branches of government and the
political parties. His proposition to establish and implement the NPR consisted of four
components, detailing the shift from 1) consumption to investment in both the public and private
sectors, 2) changing the rhetoric of public decision making so that it honors work and families, 3)
substantially reducing federal debt, and 4) administering government spending and cuts.
Gore presented the report of his National Performance Review to President Clinton and the
public on September 7, 1993. Gore cited the long term goal was to ―change the very culture of
the federal government,‖ and designated ―optimism‖ and ―effective communication‖ as the keys
to success of the NPR.
In September 1993, the National Performance Review issued its initial report, noting that
successful organizations—businesses, city and state governments, and organizations of the
federal government—do four things well. These four things became the recipe for reinventing
government: 1) Put customers first; 2) Cut red tape; 3) Empower employees to get results; 4) Cut
back to basics.
Background
In March 1993 Clinton stated that he planned to ―reinvent government‖ when he declared that
―Our goal is to make the entire federal government less expensive and more efficient, and to
change the culture of our national bureaucracy away from complacency and entitlement toward
initiative and empowerment. After this, Clinton put the project into Vice President Al Gore‘s
hands with a six month deadline for a proposal for the plan. The National Performance Review
(NPR), which was later renamed the National Partnership for Reinventing Government released
its first report in September of 1993, which contained 384 recommendations for improving
28
bureaucracy‘s performance across the entire federal governmentThe report was the product of
months‘ worth of consultation of various government departments and meetings within Clinton‘s
bureaucracy, which narrowed down 2,000 pages of proposals to the final report
NPR promised to save the federal government about $108 billion: $40.4 billion from a ‗smaller
bureaucracy,‘ $36.4 billion from program changes and $22.5 billion from streamlining
contracting processesEach of the recommendations would fall into three categories: whether it
required legislative action, presidential action, or internal bureaucratic reform. Major branches of
bureaucracy that were targeted were the US Department of Agriculture, the Department of the
Interior, the Agency for International Development (AID), Health and Human Services (HHS),
the Department of Labor, and Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The first-year status
report of the NPR claimed that, pending Congressional action, likely savings would amount to
about $12.2 billion in 1994
In 1993, Congress rejected many key provisions of the NPR downsizing when it came to
individual departmental cuts, proving that NPR could not sustain its reforms without modest
congressional support. As Donald Kettl points out, the NPR‘s biggest hurdle was that ―although
it had a strategy leading to the release of its report on September 7, 1993, it had no strategy for
September 8 and afterward.‖ [9] Still, key legislation successfully passed throughout the reform
effort was the NPR‘s procurement reforms — the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994,
the Federal Acquisition Reform Act of 1995, and the Clinger-Cohen Act in 1996.
In a September 1996 pamphlet, Gore wrote that the federal government had reduced its
workforce by nearly 24,000 as of January 1996, and that thirteen of the fourteen departments had
reduced the size of their workforce In addition, thousands of field offices that were considered
‗obsolete‘ closed. September 1997, Gore reported that 2.8 million people left the welfare rolls
between 1993 and 1997.
Toward the end of Clinton‘s first term, the task of the NPR became less to ―review and
recommend‖ and more to ―support agencies in their reinventing goals,‖ reflected in the change of
the senior advisor from Elaine Kamarck to Morley Winograd. It was also around this time that
the name change occurred to reflect more engagement with relevant public institutions such as
student loans, the IRS, and emergency preparedness.
29
NPR and the Department of Housing and Urban Development
The original 168-page report of the National Performance Review made a total of 255 agencyspecific recommendations, 10 of which were directed at the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD). The report recommended that HUD eliminate their annual budget reviews
and work with congress to change rent rules that would create strong incentives for people to
move from public housing as soon as they find jobs.
NPR and defense spending
According to military strategist Isaiah Wilson III, there were two phases to the National
Performance Review, the second of which was commenced on January 3, 1995 by Vice
President Al Gore,The aim of Phase 2 was to ―examine the basic mission of government…to find
and eliminate things that don‘t need to be done by the government.‖
While another focus of the NPR was to cut down on red tape bureaucracy, in regards to the
adjustments made to the Defense Department, Wilson argues that a fundamental step towards
actual reinvention was skipped. The Arms Export Control Act, which is viewed as the essential
piece of legislation regarding the trading of arms and related technologies, has remained
essentially untouched since 1976 even after phase 2 of the NPR.
The NPR also aimed to improve general customer satisfaction with all dealings involving the
federal government. In terms of foreign military sales, however, there is a dilemma of whether or
not the federal government‘s main ―customer‖ should be the foreign nations purchasing arms and
technologies or the American taxpayer who in part pays for the service provided by the defense
department.
NPR and the Government Printing Office
Apart from Defense spending, the NPR also narrowed its sights on government printing, namely
the operation of the Government Printing Office (GPO). According to recommendations made
by the NPR, the GPO was seen as a monopoly on government printing and was responsible for
great spending waste. The three specific recommendations read as follow:
1. Authorize the executive branch to establish a printing policy that will eliminate the current
printing monopoly.
2. Ensure public access to federal information.
30
3. Develop integrated electronic access to government information and services.[
NPR and the Executive Branch
One way Vice President Al Gore intended to put his plan into action was by reducing the number
of workers in the executive branch. Many agencies saw the downsizing as detrimental to their
efficiency because it left them "shorthanded in the delivery of programs and services." However,
Gore recognized that a smaller workforce would allow agencies to focus on customer service
instead of managing an unnecessary amount of workers. This emphasis on customer service
coincides with Gore's determination to focus on what the citizens want from the
government.[ Aside from diminishing the size of executive agencies, the report also suggests
―redefin[ing] the role of the institutional presidency‖ by reducing the management role. This
would involve ―devolving management authority to the lowest level possible and shift[ing]
accountability from the President to agency ‗customers. In this case, lowest level refers to the
interagency committees; however, management duties would be assigned to ―the politically
appointed leadership in the departments and agencies
NPR and National Service
In addition to its association with executive branch reform, the NPR‘s reinvention movement is
tightly bound to the idea of national service. In the words of President Bill Clinton, ―National
Service is nothing less than the American way to change America. It is rooted in the concept of
community: the simple idea that every one of us, no matter how many privileges with which we
are born, can still be enriched by the contributions of the least of us. Because National Service is
so closely tied to the American citizens, Clinton and Gore recognized its role in government
reinvention since a main purpose of the NPR is to respond to the needs of the people. In 1993,
the Corporation for National Service (CNS) was created to further ―develop and expand the
President‘s reinvention themes Like the ideals of the National Performance Review, the main
goal of the CNS was to yield fast results. Likewise, the CNS was dedicated to producing ―wellinformed decisions without delay, keep[ing] staffing lean and flexible, multiply[ing] resources,
and delegat[ing] authority and responsibility in-house and in the field.
NPR and streamlining
Many attempts at reducing red tape involved streamlining grant processes and listening to the
recommendations of the NPR. The U.S. Department of Commerce "streamlin[ed] the internal
31
grants process" in order to reduce the amount of paperwork involved in applications for financial
assistance. The Department of Transportation has transitioned to electronic submission of grant
forms. The Alamo Federal Executive Board Reinvention Lab in Texas works to "remove
unnecessary regulations… so that intergovernmental employees may work together as partners"
and eliminate problems together.
Hammer award
The Hammer Award was created by Vice President Gore to recognize government efficiency as
a part of the program. Made simply of a $6 hammer, a striped ribbon and an aluminum-framed
note from Gore, the award parodies the Pentagon's infamous bloated hardware costs, including a
famous perception of a $436 hammer.
32
Chapter-6
Government-To-Business
Government-to-Business (abbreviated G2B) is the online non-commercial interaction between
local and central government and the commercial business sector, rather than private individuals
(G2C), with the purpose of providing businesses information and advice on e-business 'best
practices'.
Government-to-government
Government-to-Government (abbreviated G2G) is the online non-commercial interaction
between Government organisations, departments, and authorities and other Government
organisations, departments, and authorities. Its use is common in the UK, along with G2C, the
online non-commercial interaction of local and central Government and private individuals,
and G2B the online non-commercial interaction of local and central Government and the
commercial business sector.
G2G systems generally come in one of two types:
Internal facing - joining up a single Governments departments, agencies, organisations and
authorities - examples include the integration aspect of the Government Gateway, and the
UK NHS Connecting for Health Data SPINE.
External facing - joining up multiple Governments IS systems - an example would include the
integration aspect of the Schengen Information System (SIS), developed to meet the
requirements of the Schengen Agreement.
Government-to-employees (abbreviated G2E) is the online interactions through instantaneous
communication tools betweengovernment units and their employees. G2E is one out of the four
primary delivery models of e-Government.
G2E is an effective way to provide E-learning to the employees, bring them together and to
promote knowledge sharing among them. It also gives employees the possibility of accessing
information in regard to compensation and benefit policies, training and learning opportunities
and civil rights laws. G2E services also includes software for maintaining personnel information
and records of employees.
33
G2E is adopted in many countries including the United States, Hong Kong and New Zealand.
A personal digital assistant (PDA), also known as a palmtop computer, or personal data assistant,
is a mobile device that functions as a personal information manager. PDAs are largely
considered obsolete with the widespread adoption of smartphones
Nearly all current PDAs have the ability to connect to the Internet. A PDA has an electronic
visual display, enabling it to include a web browser, all current models also have audio
capabilities enabling use as a portable media player, and also enabling most of them to be used
as mobile
phones.
Most
PDAs
can
access
the
Internet, intranets or extranets via Wi-
Fi or Wireless Wide Area Networks. Most PDAs employ touchscreen technology.
The first PDA was released in 1984 by Psion, the Organizer II. Followed by Psion's Series 3, in
1991, which began to resemble the more familiar PDA style. It also had a full keyboard.
The term PDA was first used on January 7, 1992 by Apple Computer CEO John Sculley at
the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, referring to the Apple Newton.
In 1994, IBM introduced the first PDA with full mobile phone functionality, the IBM Simon,
which can also be considered the first smartphone. Then in 1996, Nokia introduced a PDA with
full mobile phone functionality, the 9000 Communicator, which became the world's best-selling
PDA. The Communicator spawned a new category of PDAs: the "PDA phone", now called
"smartphone". Another early entrant in this market was Palm, with a line of PDA products which
began in March 1996.
34
Typical features
A typical PDA has a touchscreen for entering data, a memory card slot for data storage,
and IrDA, Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi. However, some PDAs may not have a touch screen,
using softkeys, a directional pad, and a numeric keypad or a thumb keyboard for input; this is
typically seen on telephones that are incidentally PDAs.
In order to have the functions expected of a PDA, a device's software typically includes
an appointment calendar, a to-do list, anaddress book for contacts, a calculator, and some sort
of memo (or "note") program. PDAs with wireless data connections also typically include
an email client and a Web browser.
Touch screen
Many of the original PDAs, such as the Apple Newton and Palm Pilot, featured a touchscreen for
user interaction, having only a few buttons—usually reserved for shortcuts to often-used
programs.
Some
touchscreen
PDAs,
including Windows
Mobile devices,
had
a
detachable stylus to facilitate making selections. The user interacts with the device by tapping
the screen to select buttons or issue commands, or by dragging a finger (or the stylus) on the
screen to make selections or scroll.
Typical methods of entering text on touchscreen PDAs include:
A virtual keyboard, where a keyboard is shown on the touchscreen. Text is entered by
tapping the on-screen keyboard with a finger or stylus.
An external keyboard connected via USB, Infrared port, or Bluetooth. Some users may
choose a chorded keyboard for one-handed use.
Handwriting recognition, where letters or words are written on the touchscreen, and the PDA
converts the input to text. Recognition and computation of handwritten horizontal and
vertical formulas, such as "1 + 2 =", may also be a feature.
Stroke recognition allows the user to make a predefined set of strokes on the touchscreen,
sometimes in a special input area, representing the various characters to be input. The strokes
are often simplified character shapes, making them easier for the device to recognize. One
widely known stroke recognition system is Palm's Graffiti.
35
Despite rigorous research and development projects, end-users experience mixed results with
handwriting recognition systems. Some find it frustrating and inaccurate, while others are
satisfied with the quality of the recognition.
Touchscreen PDAs intended for business use, such as the BlackBerry and Palm Treo, usually
also offer full keyboards and scroll wheels or thumbwheels to facilitate data entry and
navigation.
Many touchscreen PDAs support some form of external keyboard as well. Specialized folding
keyboards, which offer a full-sized keyboard but collapse into a compact size for transport, are
available for many models. External keyboards may attach to the PDA directly, using a cable, or
may use wireless technology such as infrared or Bluetooth to connect to the PDA.
Newer PDAs, such as the HTC HD2, Apple iPhone, Apple iPod Touch, and Palm Pre, Palm Pre
Plus, Palm Pixi, Palm Pixi Plus, Google Android (operating system) include more advanced
forms of touchscreen that can register multiple touches simultaneously. These "multi-touch"
displays allow for more sophisticated interfaces using various gestures entered with one or more
fingers.
Memory cards
Although many early PDAs did not have memory card slots, now most have either some form
of Secure Digital (SD) slot or aCompactFlash slot. Although designed for memory, Secure
Digital Input/Output (SDIO) and CompactFlash cards are available that provide accessories like
Wi-Fi or digital cameras, if the device can support them. Some PDAs also have a USB port,
mainly for USB flash drivesSome PDAs use microSD cards, which are electronically compatible
with SD cards, but have a much smaller physical size.
Wired connectivity
While early PDAs connected to a user's personal computer via serial ports or another proprietary
connection many today connect via a USB cable. Older PDAs were unable to connect to each
other via USB, as their implementations of USB didn't support acting as the "host".
Some early PDAs were able to connect to the Internet indirectly by means of an external modem
connected via the PDA's serial port or "sync" connector or directly by using an expansion card
that provided an Ethernet port.
36
Wireless connectivity
Most modern PDAs have Bluetooth, a popular wireless protocol for mobile devices. Bluetooth
can be used to connect keyboards, headsets, GPS receivers, and other nearby accessories. It's also
possible to transfer files between PDAs that have Bluetooth.
Many modern PDAs have Wi-Fi wireless network connectivity and can connect to Wi-Fi
hotspots. All smartphones, and some other modern PDAs, can connect to Wireless Wide Area
Networks, such as those provided by cellular telecommunications companies.
Older PDAs from the 90s to 2006 typically had an IrDA (infrared) port allowing short-range,
line-of-sight wireless communication. Few current models use this technology, as it has been
supplanted by Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. IrDA allows communication between two PDAs, or between
a PDA and any device with an IrDA port or adapter. Some printers have IrDA
receivers,[11] allowing IrDA-equipped PDAs to print to them, if the PDA's operating
system supports it. Universal PDA keyboards designed for these older PDAs use infrared
technology.Infrared technology is low-cost and has the advantage of being allowed aboard.
Synchronization
Most PDAs can synchronize their data with applications on a user's computer. This allows the
user to update contact, schedule, or other information on their computer, using software such
as Microsoft Outlook or ACT!, and have that same data transferred to PDA—or transfer updated
information from the PDA back to the computer. This eliminates the need for the user to update
their data in two places.
Synchronization also prevents the loss of information stored on the device if it is lost, stolen, or
destroyed. When the PDA is repaired or replaced, it can be "re-synced" with the computer,
restoring the user's data.
Some users find that data input is quicker on their computer than on their PDA, since text input
via a touchscreen or small-scale keyboard is slower than a full-size keyboard. Transferring data
to a PDA via the computer is therefore a lot quicker than having to manually input all data on the
handheld device.
37
Most PDAs come with the ability to synchronize to a computer. This is done
through synchronization software provided with the handheld, or sometime with the computer's
operating system. Examples of synchronization software include:
HotSync Manager, for Palm OS PDAs
'Microsoft ActiveSync, used by Windows XP and older Windows operating systems to
synchronize with Windows Mobile, Pocket PC, and Windows CE PDAs, as well as PDAs
running iOS, Palm OS, and Symbian
Microsoft Windows Mobile Device Center for Windows Vista, which supports Microsoft
Windows Mobile and Pocket PC devices.
Apple iTunes, used on Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows to sync iOS devices (such as the
iPhone and iPod touch)
iSync, included with Mac OS X, can synchronize many SyncML-enabled PDAs
BlackBerry Desktop Software, used to sync BlackBerry devices.
These programs allow the PDA to be synchronized with a personal information manager, which
may be part of the computer's operating system, provided with the PDA, or sold separately by a
third party. For example, the RIM BlackBerry comes with RIM'sDesktop Manager program,
which can synchronize to both Microsoft Outlook and ACT!.
Other PDAs come only with their own proprietary software. For example, some early Palm OS
PDAs came only with Palm Desktop, while later Palm PDAs—such as the Treo 650—have the
ability to sync to Palm Desktop or Microsoft Outlook. Microsoft's ActiveSync and Windows
Mobile Device Center only synchronize with Microsoft Outlook or a Microsoft Exchange server
Third-party synchronization software is also available for some PDAs from companies like
CommonTime[12] and CompanionLink. Third-party software can be used to synchronize PDAs to
other personal information managers that are not supported by the PDA manufacturers (for
example, GoldMine and IBM Lotus Notes).
Wireless synchronization
Some PDAs can synchronize some or all of their data using their wireless networking
capabilities, rather than having to be directly connected to a personal computer via a cable.
38
Apple iOS devices, like the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, can use Apple's iCloud service
(formerly MobileMe) to synchronize calendar, address book, mail account, Internet bookmark,
and other data with one or more Macintosh or Windows computers using Wi-Fi or cellular data
connections.
Devices running Palm's webOS or Google's Android operating system primarily sync with
the cloud. For example, if Gmail is used, information in contacts, email, and calendar can be
synchronized between the phone and Google's servers.
RIM sells BlackBerry Enterprise Server to corporations so that corporate BlackBerry users can
wirelessly synchronize their PDAs with the company's Microsoft Exchange Server, IBM Lotus
Domino, or Novell GroupWise servers. Email, calendar entries, contacts, tasks, and memos kept
on the company's server are automatically synchronized with the BlackBerry.
39
Chapter-7
Automobile Navigation
Some PDAs include Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers; this is particularly true of
smartphones. Other PDAs are compatible with external GPS-receiver add-ons that use the PDA's
processor and screen to display location information.
PDAs with GPS functionality can be used for automotive navigation. PDAs are increasingly
being fitted as standard on new cars.
PDA-based GPS can also display traffic conditions, perform dynamic routing, and show known
locations of roadside mobile radar guns. TomTom, Garmin, and iGO offer GPS navigation
software for PDAs.
Ruggedized PDAs
Some businesses and government organizations rely upon rugged PDAs, sometimes known
as enterprise digital assistants (EDAs), for mobile data applications. EDAs often have extra
features for data capture, such as barcode readers, radio-frequency identification(RFID)
readers, magnetic stripe card readers, or smart card readers.
Typical applications include:
military: notably U.S. Army
supply chain management in warehouses
package delivery
route accounting
medical treatment and recordkeeping in hospitals
facilities maintenance and management
parking enforcement
access control and security
capital asset maintenance
meter reading by utilities
"wireless waitress" applications in restaurants and hospitality venues
40
infection control audit and surveillance within healthcare environments
taxicab allocation and routing.
Medical and scientific uses
Many companies have developed PDA products aimed at the medical profession's unique needs,
such as drug databases, treatment information, and medical news. Services such
as AvantGo translate medical journals into PDA-readable formats. WardWatch organizes
medical records, providing reminders of information such as the treatment regimens of patients
to doctors making wardrounds. Pendragon and Syware provide tools for conducting research
with, allowing the user to enter data into a centralized database using their PDA. Microsoft
Visual Studio and Sun Java also provide programming tools for developing survey instruments
on the handheld. These development tools allow for integration with SQL databases that are
stored on the handheld and can be synchronized with a desktop- or server-based database.
PDAs have been shown to aid diagnosis and drug selection and some studies have concluded that
when patients use PDAs to record their symptoms, they communicate more effectively with
hospitals during follow-up visits.
The development of Sensor Web technology may lead to wearable bodily sensors to monitor
ongoing conditions, like diabetes orepilepsy, which would alert patients and doctors when
treatment is required using wireless communication and PDAs.
Educational uses
As mobile technology becomes more common, it is increasingly being used as a learning tool.
Some educational institutions have embraced M-Learning, integrating PDAs into their teaching
practices.
PDAs and handheld devices are allowed in many classrooms for digital note-taking. Students can
spell-check, modify, and amend their class notes on the PDA. Some educators distribute course
material through the Internet or infrared file-sharing functions of the PDA. Textbook publishers
have begun to release e-books, or electronic textbooks, which can be uploaded directly to a PDA,
reducing the number of textbooks students must carry Software companies have developed PDA
41
programs
to
meet
the
instructional
needs
of
educational
institutions,
such
as
dictionaries,thesauri, word processing software, encyclopedias, and digital lesson planners.
Recreational uses
PDAs may be used by music enthusiasts to play a variety of music file formats. Many PDAs
include the functionality of an MP3 player.
Road rally enthusiasts can use PDAs to calculate distance, speed, and time. This information
may be used for navigation, or the PDA's GPS functions can be used for navigation.
Underwater
divers can
use
PDAs
to
plan breathing
gas mixtures
and decompression
schedules using software such as "V-Planner."
As of today, any smartphone can do this as well.
Lists of PDAs
Popular consumer PDAs
Acer N Series
AlphaSmart
Amida Simputer
BlackBerry
Fujitsu Siemens Computers Pocket LOOX
HP iPAQ
Huawei series
HTC (Dopod, Qtek)'s series of Windows Mobile PDA/phones
I-mate
iPod touch, which also plays music, video, and games
Palm, Inc. smartphones under Palm OS and under the successor WebOS (Pre, and Pixi).
PocketMail (email PDA with built-in acoustic coupler)
Royal
Discontinued PDAs
Atari Portfolio
42
Casio Pocket Viewer
Dell Axim
E-TEN
GMate Yopy
Handspring (company)
iPAQ
HP Jornada Pocket PC
LifeDrive
NEC MobilePro
Osaris running EPOC OS distributed by Oregon Scientific
Palm (PDA) (Tungsten E2, TX, Treo, Zire Handheld)
Philips Nino
Psion
Roland PMA-5 (Personal Music Assistant)
Sharp Wizard and Sharp Zaurus
Sony CLIÉ
Sony Magic Link with the Magic Cap operating system
Tapwave Zodiac
Toshiba e310
Rugged PDAs
Pidion (Bluebird Soft Inc.)
M3 Mobileecom instruments
Getac
Motorola (Symbol Technologies)
Intermec
Psion Teklogix
Datalogic Mobile
CatchwellHoneywell (Hand Held Products)
Skeye (Hoeft & Wessel AG)
43
Trimble Navigation
Handheld Group
American Industrial Systems (Mil-Spec, IP67)
Unitech
Two Technologies, Inc (Ultra Rugged Handheld Computers)
Android
Automotive navigation system
Construction field computing
Desknote
Graffiti (Palm OS)
Hipster PDA
Information appliance
iOS
Laptop
Medical calculator
Mobile software
MLearning
Mobile Web
Netbook
Palm OS
Pen computer
Personal area network
Personal communicator
Personal Information Display
Personal information management
Personal navigation assistant (PNA)
Screen protector
Sena Cases
Smartphone
44
Subnotebook
Tablet computer
Timex Datalink
Ultra-mobile PC
Virtual assistance
Wearable computer
45
Chapter-8
Short Message Service
Short Message Service
Short Message Service (SMS) is a text messaging service component of phone, web, or mobile
communication systems. It uses standardized communications protocols to allow fixed
line ormobile phone devices to exchange short text messages.
SMS is the most widely used data application, with an estimated 3.5 billion active users, or about
80% of all mobile phone subscribers at the end of 2010. The term "SMS" is used for all types of
short text messaging and the user activity itself in many parts of the world. SMS is also
employed in direct marketing, known as SMS marketing.
SMS as used on modern handsets originated from radio telegraphy in radio memo pagers using
standardized phone protocols. These were defined in 1985 as part of the Global System for
Mobile Communications (GSM) series of standards as a means of sending messages of up to 160
charactersto and from GSM mobile handsets. Though most SMS messages are mobile-to-mobile
text messages, support for the service has expanded to include other mobile technologies, such
as ANSI CDMA networks and Digital AMPS, as well as satellite and landlinenetworks
46
Initial concept
SMS messages sent monthly in USA (billion)
Adding text messaging functionality to mobile devices began in the early 1980s. The first action
plan of the CEPT Group GSM was approved in December 1982, requesting "The services and
facilities offered in the public switched telephone networks and public data networks... should be
available in the mobile system This plan included the exchange of text messages either directly
between mobile stations, or transmitted via Message Handling Systems widely in use at that
time.
The SMS concept was developed in the Franco-German GSM cooperation in 1984 by Friedhelm
Hillebrand and Bernard Ghillebaert. The GSM is optimized for telephony, since this was
identified as its main application. The key idea for SMS was to use this telephone-optimized
system, and to transport messages on the signaling paths needed to control the telephone traffic
during time periods when no signaling traffic existed. In this way, unused resources in the
system could be used to transport messages at minimal cost. However, it was necessary to limit
the length of the messages to 128 bytes (later improved to 160 seven-bit characters) so that the
messages could fit into the existing signaling formats. Based on his personal observations and on
analysis of the typical lengths of postcard and Telex messages, Hillebrand argued that 160
characters was sufficient to express most messages succinctly.
47
SMS could be implemented in every mobile station by updating its software. Hence, a large base
of SMS capable terminals and networks existed when people began to use SMS. A new network
element required was a specialized short message service center, and enhancements were
required to the radio capacity and network transport infrastructure to accommodate growing
SMS traffic.
Early development
The technical development of SMS was a multinational collaboration supporting the framework
of standards bodies. Through these organizations the technology was made freely available to the
whole world
The first proposal which initiated the development of SMS was made by a contribution of
Germany and France into the GSM group meeting in February 1985 in Oslo .This proposal was
further elaborated in GSM subgroup WP1 Services (Chairman Martine Alvernhe, France
Telecom) based on a contribution from Germany. There were also initial discussions in the
subgroup WP3 network aspects chaired by Jan Audestad (Telenor). The result was approved by
the main GSM group in a June '85 document which was distributed to industry. The input
documents on SMS had been prepared by Friedhelm Hillebrand (Deutsche Telekom) with
contributions from Bernard Ghillebaert (France Télécom). The definition that Friedhelm
Hillebrand and Bernard Ghillebaert brought into GSM called for the provision of a message
transmission service of alphanumeric messages to mobile users "with acknowledgement
capabilities". The last three words transformed SMS into something much more useful than the
prevailing messaging paging that some in GSM might have had in mind.
SMS was considered in the main GSM group as a possible service for the new digital cellular
system. In GSM document ―Services and Facilities to be provided in the GSM System both
mobile-originated and mobile-terminated short messages appear on the table of GSM
teleservices.
The discussions on the GSM services were concluded in the recommendation GSM 02.03
―TeleServices supported by a GSMPLMN Here a rudimentary description of the three services
was given:
48
1. Short message Mobile Terminated (SMS-MT)/ Point-to-Point: the ability of a network to
transmit a Short Message to a mobile phone. The message can be sent by phone or by a
software application.
2. Short message Mobile Originated (SMS-MO)/ Point-to-Point: the ability of a network to
transmit a Short Message sent by a mobile phone. The message can be sent to a phone or
to a software application.
3. Short message Cell Broadcast.
The material elaborated in GSM and its WP1 subgroup was handed over in Spring 1987 to a new
GSM body called IDEG (the Implementation of Data and Telematic Services Experts Group),
which had its kickoff in May 1987 under the chairmanship of Friedhelm Hillebrand (German
Telecom). The technical standard known today was largely created by IDEG (later WP4) as the
two recommendations GSM 03.40 (the two point-to-point services merged) and GSM 03.41 (cell
broadcast).
WP4 created a Drafting Group Message Handling (DGMH), which was responsible for the
specification of SMS. Finn Trosby of Telenor chaired the draft group through its first 3 years, in
which the design of SMS was established. DGMH had five to eight participants, and Finn Trosby
mentions as major contributors Kevin Holley, Eija Altonen, Didier Luizard and Alan Cox. The
first action plan mentions for the first time the Technical Specification 03.40 ―Technical
Realisation of the Short Message Service‖. Responsible editor was Finn Trosby. The first and
very rudimentary draft of the technical specification was completed in November 1987 However,
drafts useful for the manufacturers followed at a later stage in the period. A comprehensive
description of the work in this period is given in.
The work on the draft specification continued in the following few years, where Kevin Holley of
Cellnet (now Telefónica O2 UK) played a leading role. Besides the completion of the main
specification GSM 03.40, the detailed protocol specifications on the system interfaces also
needed to be completed.
Support in other architectures
The Mobile Application Part (MAP) of the SS7 protocol included support for the transport of
Short Messages through the Core Network from its inception MAP Phase 2 expanded support for
SMS by introducing a separate operation code for Mobile Terminated Short Message
49
transport. Since Phase 2, there have been no changes to the Short Message operation packages in
MAP, although other operation packages have been enhanced to support CAMEL SMS control.
From 3GPP Releases 99 and 4 onwards, CAMEL Phase 3 introduced the ability for
the Intelligent Network (IN) to control aspects of the Mobile Originated Short Message
Service, while CAMEL Phase 4, as part of 3GPP Release 5 and onwards, provides the IN with
the ability to control the Mobile Terminated service.[23] CAMEL allows the gsmSCP to block the
submission (MO) or delivery (MT) of Short Messages, route messages to destinations other than
that specified by the user, and perform real-time billing for the use of the service. Prior to
standardized CAMEL control of the Short Message Service, IN control relied on switch vendor
specific extensions to the Intelligent Network Application Part (INAP) of SS7.
Early implementations
The first SMS message was sent over the Vodafone GSM network in the United Kingdom on 3
December 1992, from Neil Papworthof Sema Group (now Mavenir Systems) using a personal
computer to Richard Jarvis of Vodafone using an Orbitel 901 handset. The text of the message
was ―Merry Christmas The first commercial deployment of a short message service
center (SMSC)
was
by Aldiscon part
of Logica (now
part
of Acision)
with
Telia
(now TeliaSonera) in Sweden in 1993 followed by Fleet Call (now Nextel) in the US, Telenor in
Norway and BT Cellnet (now O2 UK) later in 1993. All first installations of SMS gateways were
for network notifications sent to mobile phones, usually to inform of voice mail messages. The
first commercially sold SMS service was offered to consumers, as a person-to-person text
messaging service by Radiolinja (now part of Elisa) in Finland in 1993. Most early GSM mobile
phone handsets did not support the ability to send SMS text messages, and Nokia was the only
handset manufacturer whose total GSM phone line in 1993 supported user-sending of SMS text
messages.
Initial growth was slow, with customers in 1995 sending on average only 0.4 messages per GSM
customer per month. One factor in the slow takeup of SMS was that operators were slow to set
up charging systems, especially for prepaid subscribers, and eliminate billing fraud which was
possible by changing SMSC settings on individual handsets to use the SMSCs of other
operators Initially, networks in the UK only allowed customers to send messages to other users
on the same network, limiting the usefulness of the service. This restriction was lifted in 1999.
50
Over time, this issue was eliminated by switch billing instead of billing at the SMSC and by new
features within SMSCs to allow blocking of foreign mobile users sending messages through it.
By the end of 2000, the average number of messages reached 35 per user per month, and by
Christmas Day 2006, over 205 million messages were sent in the UK alone.
It is also alleged that the fact that roaming customers, in the early days, rarely received bills for
their SMSs after holidays abroad which gave a boost to text messaging as an alternative to voice
calls
Text messaging outside GSM
SMS was originally designed as part of GSM, but is now available on a wide range of networks,
including 3G networks. However, not all text messaging systems use SMS, and some notable
alternative implementations of the concept include J-Phone's SkyMail andNTT Docomo's Short
Mail, both in Japan. Email messaging from phones, as popularized by NTT Docomo's imode and
the RIMBlackBerry,
also
typically
uses
standard
mail
protocols
such
as SMTP over TCP/IP.
SMS today
In 2010, 6.1 trillion SMS text messages were sent. This translates into an average of 193000
SMS per second.[31] SMS has become a massive commercial industry, earning $114.6 billion
globally in 2010. The global average price for an SMS message is $0.11, while mobile networks
charge each other interconnect fees of at least $0.04 when connecting between different phone
networks
While SMS is still a growing market, traditional SMS are becoming increasingly challenged by
alternative messaging services available on smartphones with data connections, especially in
Western countries where these services are growing in popularity.
51
Chapter-9
Technical Details
GSM
The Short Message Service—Point to Point (SMS-PP)—was originally defined in GSM
recommendation 03.40, which is now maintained in 3GPP as TS 23.040 GSM 03.41 (now 3GPP
TS 23.041) defines the Short Message Service—Cell Broadcast (SMS-CB), which allows
messages (advertising, public information, etc.) to be broadcast to all mobile users in a specified
geographical area
Messages are sent to a short message service center (SMSC), which provides a ―store and
forward‖ mechanism. It attempts to send messages to the SMSC's recipients. If a recipient is not
reachable, the SMSC queues the message for later retry. Some SMSCs also provide a ―forward
and forget‖ option where transmission is tried only once. Both mobile terminated (MT, for
messages sent to a mobile handset) and mobile originating (MO, for those sent from the mobile
handset) operations are supported. Message delivery is ―best effort,‖ so there are no guarantees
that a message will actually be delivered to its recipient, but delay or complete loss of a message
is uncommon, typically affecting less than 5 percent of messages Some providers allow users to
request delivery reports, either via the SMS settings of most modern phones, or by prefixing each
message with *0# or *N#. However, the exact meaning of confirmations varies from reaching
the network, to being queued for sending, to being sent, to receiving a confirmation of receipt
from the target device, and users are often not informed of the specific type of success being
reported.
SMS is a stateless communication protocol in which every SMS message is considered entirely
independent of other messages. Enterprise applications using SMS as a data bearer require
that session management be maintained external to the protocol.
Message size
Transmission of short messages between the SMSC and the handset is done whenever using
the Mobile Application Part (MAP) of theSS7 protocol. Messages are sent with the MAP MOand MT-ForwardSM operations, whose payload length is limited by the constraints of the
signaling protocol to precisely 140 octets (140 octets = 140 * 8 bits = 1120 bits). Short messages
52
can be encoded using a variety of alphabets: the default GSM 7-bit alphabet, the 8-bit data
alphabet, and the 16-bit UCS-2 alphabet.
Depending on which alphabet the subscriber has configured in the handset, this leads to the
maximum individual short message sizes of 160 7-bitcharacters, 140 8-bit characters, or 70 16bit characters. GSM 7-bit alphabet support is mandatory for GSM handsets and network
elements but characters in languages such as Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, or Cyrillic
alphabet languages (e.g., Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, etc.) must be encoded using the 16bit UCS-2 character encoding (see Unicode). Routing data and other metadatais additional to the
payload size.
Larger content (concatenated SMS, multipart or segmented SMS, or "long SMS") can be sent
using multiple messages, in which case each message will start with a User Data Header (UDH)
containing segmentation information. Since UDH is part of the payload, the number of available
characters per segment is lower: 153 for 7-bit encoding, 134 for 8-bit encoding and 67 for 16-bit
encoding. The receiving handset is then responsible for reassembling the message and presenting
it to the user as one long message. While the standard theoretically permits up to 255 segments, 6
to 8 segment messages are the practical maximum, and long messages are often billed as
equivalent to multiple SMS messages. Some providers have offered length-oriented pricing
schemes for messages, however, the phenomenon is disappearing.
Gateway providers
SMS gateway providers facilitate SMS traffic between businesses and mobile subscribers,
including mission-critical messages, SMS for enterprises, content delivery, and entertainment
services involving SMS, e.g. TV voting. Considering SMS messaging performance and cost, as
well as the level of messaging services, SMS gateway providers can be classified as aggregators
or SS7 providers.
The aggregator model is based on multiple agreements with mobile carriers to exchange twoway SMS traffic into and out of the operator's SMSC, also known as local termination model.
Aggregators lack direct access into the SS7 protocol, which is the protocol where the SMS
messages are exchanged. SMS messages are delivered to the operator's SMSC, but not the
subscriber's handset; the SMSC takes care of further handling of the message through the SS7
network.
53
Another type of SMS gateway provider is based on SS7 connectivity to route SMS messages,
also known as international termination model. The advantage of this model is the ability to route
data directly through SS7, which gives the provider total control and visibility of the complete
path during SMS routing. This means SMS messages can be sent directly to and from recipients
without having to go through the SMSCs of other mobile operators. Therefore, it is possible to
avoid delays and message losses, offering full delivery guarantees of messages and optimized
routing. This model is particularly efficient when used in mission-critical messaging and SMS
used in corporate communications.
Interconnectivity with other networks
Message
Service
Centers
communicate
with
the Public
Land
Mobile
Network
(PLMN) or PSTN via Interworking and Gateway MSCs.
Subscriber-originated messages are transported from a handset to a service center, and may be
destined for mobile users, subscribers on a fixed network, or Value-Added Service Providers
(VASPs), also known as application-terminated. Subscriber-terminated messages are transported
from the service center to the destination handset, and may originate from mobile users, from
fixed network subscribers, or from other sources such as VASPs.
On some carriers nonsubscribers can send messages to a subscriber's phone using an Email-toSMS
gateway.
Additionally,
many
carriers,
including AT&T
Mobility, T-Mobile
USA,[42] Sprint and Verizon Wireless, offer the ability to do this through their respective
websites.
For example, an AT&T subscriber whose phone number was 555-555-5555 would receive emails addressed to [email protected] as text messages. Subscribers can easily reply to
these SMS messages, and the SMS reply is sent back to the original email address. Sending
email to SMS is free for the sender, but the recipient is subject to the standard delivery charges.
Only the first 160 characters of an email message can be delivered to a phone, and only 160
characters can be sent from a phone.
Text-enabled fixed-line handsets are required to receive messages in text format. However,
messages can be delivered to nonenabled phones using text-to-speech conversion.
54
Short messages can send binary content such as ringtones or logos, as well as Over-the-air
programming (OTA) or configuration data. Such uses are a vendor-specific extension of the
GSM specification and there are multiple competing standards, although Nokia'sSmart
Messaging is common. An alternative way for sending such binary content is EMS messaging,
which is standardized and not dependent on vendors.
SMS is used for M2M (Machine to Machine) communication. For instance, there is an LED
display machine controlled by SMS, and some vehicle tracking companies use SMS for their
data transport or telemetry needs. SMS usage for these purposes is slowly being superseded
by GPRS services owing to their lower overall cost. GPRS is offered by smaller telco players as
a route of sending SMS text to reduce the cost of SMS texting internationally.
AT commands
Many mobile and satellite transceiver units support the sending and receiving of SMS using an
extended version of the Hayes command set, a specific command language originally developed
for the Hayes Smartmodem 300-baud modem in 1977
The connection between the terminal equipment and the transceiver can be realized with a serial
cable (e.g., USB), a Bluetooth link, aninfrared link, etc. Common AT commands include
AT+CMGS (send message), AT+CMSS (send message from storage), AT+CMGL (list
messages) and AT+CMGR (read message).
However, not all modern devices support receiving of messages if the message storage (for
instance the device's internal memory) is not accessible using AT commands.
Premium-rated short messages
Short messages may be used normally to provide premium rate services to subscribers of a
telephone network.
Mobile-terminated short messages can be used to deliver digital content such as news alerts,
financial information, logos, and ring tones. The first premium-rate media content delivered via
the SMS system was the world's first paid downloadable ringing tones, as commercially
launched by Saunalahti (later Jippii Group, now part of Elisa Grous, in 1998. Initially only Nokia
branded phones could handle them. By 2002 the ringtone business globally had exceeded $1
billion of service revenues, and nearly $5 billion by 2008 Today, they are also used to pay
55
smaller payments online—for example, for file-sharing services, in mobile application stores, or
VIP section entrance. Outside the online world, one can buy a bus ticket or beverages from
ATM, pay a parking ticket, order a store catalog or some goods (e.g., discount movie DVDs),
and much more.
Premium-rated messages are also used in Donors Message Service to collect money for charities
and foundations. DMS was first launched at April 1, 2004, and is very popular in the Czech
Republic. For example, the Czech people sent over 1.5 million messages to help South Asia
recover from the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake.
The Value-added service provider (VASP) providing the content submits the message to the
mobile operator's SMSC(s) using anTCP/IP protocol such as the short message peer-to-peer
protocol (SMPP) or the External Machine Interface (EMI). The SMSC delivers the text using the
normal Mobile Terminated delivery procedure. The subscribers are charged extra for receiving
this premium content; the revenue is typically divided between the mobile network operator and
the VASP either through revenue share or a fixed transport fee. Submission to the SMSC is
usually handled by a third party.
Mobile-originated short messages may also be used in a premium-rated manner for services such
as televoting. In this case, the VASP providing the service obtains a short code from the
telephone network operator, and subscribers send texts to that number. The payouts to the
carriers vary by carrier; percentages paid are greatest on the lowest-priced premium SMS
services. Most information providers should expect to pay about 45 percent of the cost of the
premium SMS up front to the carrier. The submission of the text to the SMSC is identical to a
standard MO Short Message submission, but once the text is at the SMSC, the Service Center
(SC) identifies the Short Code as a premium service. The SC will then direct the content of the
text message to the VASP, typically using an IP protocol such as SMPP or EMI. Subscribers are
charged a premium for the sending of such messages, with the revenue typically shared between
the network operator and the VASP. Short codes only work within one country, they are not
international.
An alternative to inbound SMS is based on long numbers (international number format, e.g. +44
762 480 5000), which can be used in place of short codes for SMS reception in several
applications, such as TV voting, product promotions and campaigns. Long numbers work
56
internationally, allow businesses to use their own numbers, rather than short codes, which are
usually shared across many brands. Additionally, long numbers are nonpremium inbound
numbers.
Threaded SMS
Threaded SMS is a visual styling orientation of SMS message history that arranges messages to
and from a contact in chronological order on a single screen. Visually, this style of representation
provides a back-and-forth chat-like history for each individual contact. Hierarchical-threading at
the conversation-level (as typical in blogs and on-line messaging boards)is not widely supported
by SMS messaging clients. This limitation is due to the fact that there is no session identifier or
subject-line passed back and forth between sent and received messages in the header data (as
specified by SMS protocol) from which the client device can properly thread an incoming
message to a specific dialogue, or even to a specific message within a dialogue. Most smart
phone text-messaging-clients are able to create some contextual threading of "group messages"
which narrows the context of the thread around the common interests shared by group members.
On the other hand, advanced enterprise messaging applications which push messages from a
remote server often display a dynamically changing reply number (multiple numbers used by the
same sender), which is used along with the sender's phone number to create sessiontracking capabilities analogous to the functionality that cookies provide for web-browsing. As
one pervasive example, this technique is used to extend the functionality of many Instant
Messenger (IM) applications such that they are able to communicate over two-way dialogues
with the much larger SMS user-base. In cases where multiple reply numbers are used by the
enterprise server to maintain the dialogue, the visual conversation threading on the client may be
separated into multiple threads.
Application-to-Person (A2P) SMS
While SMS reached its popularity as a person-to-person messaging, another type of SMS is
growing fast: application-to-person (A2P) messaging. A2P is a type of SMS sent from a
subscriber to an application or sent from an application to a subscriber. It is commonly used by
financial institutions, airlines, hotel booking sites, social networks, and other organizations
sending SMS from their systems to their customers. According to research in 2011, A2P traffic is
growing faster than P2P messaging traffic.
57
Satellite phone networks
All commercial satellite phone networks except ACeS and OptusSat support SMS While
early Iridium handsets only support incoming SMS, later models can also send messages. The
price per message varies for different networks. Unlike some mobile phone networks, there is no
extra charge for sending international SMS or to send one to a different satellite phone network.
SMS can sometimes be sent from areas where the signal is too poor to make a voice call.
Satellite phone networks usually have web-based or email-based SMS portals where one can
send free SMS to phones on that particular network.
Unreliability
Unlike dedicated texting systems like the Simple Network Paging Protocol and Motorola's
ReFLEX protocol. SMS message delivery is not guaranteed, and many implementations provide
no mechanism through which a sender can determine whether an SMS message has been
delivered in a timely manner. SMS messages are generally treated as lower-priority traffic than
voice, and various studies have shown that around 1% to 5% of messages are lost entirely, even
during normal operation conditions, and others may not be delivered until long after their
relevance has passed. The use of SMS as an emergency notification service in particular has
been starkly criticized
Vulnerabilities
The Global Service for Mobile communications (GSM), with the greatest worldwide number of
users, succumbs to several security vulnerabilities. In the GSM, only the airway traffic between
the Mobile Station (MS) and the Base Transceiver Station (BTS) is optionally encrypted with a
weak and broken stream cipher (A5/1 or A5/2). The authentication is unilateral and also
vulnerable. There are also many other security vulnerabilities and shortcomings. Such
vulnerabilities are inherent to SMS as one of the superior and well-tried services with a global
availability in the GSM networks. SMS messaging has some extra security vulnerabilities due to
its store-and-forward feature, and the problem of fake SMS that can be conducted via the
Internet. When a user is roaming, SMS content passes through different networks, perhaps
including the Internet, and is exposed to various vulnerabilities and attacks. Another concern
arises when an adversary gets access to a phone and reads the previous unprotected messages. In
October 2005, researchers from Pennsylvania State University published an analysis of
58
vulnerabilities in SMS-capable cellular networks. The researchers speculated that attackers might
exploit the open functionality of these networks to disrupt them or cause them to fail, possibly on
a nationwide scale.
SMS spoofing
The GSM industry has identified a number of potential fraud attacks on mobile operators that
can be delivered via abuse of SMS messaging services. The most serious of threats is SMS
Spoofing. SMS Spoofing occurs when a fraudster manipulates address information in order to
impersonate a user that has roamed onto a foreign network and is submitting messages to the
home network. Frequently, these messages are addressed to destinations outside the home
network—with the home SMSC essentially being ―hijacked‖ to send messages into other
networks.
The only sure way of detecting and blocking spoofed messages is to screen incoming mobileoriginated messages to verify that the sender is a valid subscriber and that the message is coming
from a valid and correct location. This can be implemented by adding an intelligent routing
function to the network that can query originating subscriber details from the HLR before the
message is submitted for delivery. This kind of intelligent routing function is beyond the
capabilities of legacy messaging infrastructure.
Limitation
In an effort to limit telemarketers who had taken to bombarding users with hordes of unsolicited
messages India introduced new regulations in September 2011, including a cap of 3,000 SMS
messages per subscriber per month, or an average of 100 per subscriber per day. Due to
representations received from some of the service providers and consumers, TRAI (Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India) has raised this limit to 200 SMS messages per sim per day in case
of prepaid services, and up to 6,000 SMS messages per sim per month in case
of postpaid services with effect from 1 November 2011. However it was ruled unconstitutional
by the Delhi high court but there are some limitations.
59
Flash SMS
A Flash SMS is a type of SMS that appears directly on the main screen without user interaction
and is not automatically stored in the inbox. It can be useful in emergencies such as a fire
alarm or cases of confidentiality, as in delivering one-time passwords.
Silent SMS
Silent messages, also known as ―silent tms‖, ―stealth sms‖ or ―stealth ping‖, are employed
nowadays to locate a person and thus to create a complete movement profile. They do not show
up on a display, nor trigger any acoustical signal when received. Their primary purpose was to
deliver special services of the network operator to any cell phone. The mobile provider, often at
the behest of the police, will capture data such as subscriber identification IMSI. In Germany in
2010 almost half a million ―silent SMSs‖ were sent by the federal police, customs and the secret
service "Verfassungsschutz" (offices for protection of the constitution).
Comparison of mobile phone standards
SMS language
Telegram
Text messaging
Thumbing
GSM 03.40
Short Message Service Center (SMSC)
Short message service technical realisation (GSM)
SMS gateway (sending text to or from devices other than phones)
SMS hubbing
SMS home routing
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)
Extended Messaging Service
Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS)
60
Chapter-10
Multimedia Messaging Service
Multimedia Messaging Service
A multimedia message on a mobile phone.
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) is a standard way to send messages that
include multimedia content to and from mobile phones. It extends the core SMS (Short Message
Service) capability that allowed exchange of text messages only up to 160 characters in length.
The most popular use is to send photographs from camera-equipped handsets, although it is also
popular as a method of delivering news and entertainment content including videos, pictures, text
pages and ringtones.
The standard is developed by the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), although during development it
was part of the 3GPP and WAP groups.
Multimedia messaging services were first developed as a captive technology that would enable
service providers to "collect a fee every time anyone snaps a photo
Early MMS deployments were plagued by technical issues and frequent consumer
disappointments, such as having sent an MMS message, receiving a confirmation it had been
61
sent, being billed for the MMS message, to find that it had not been delivered to the intended
recipient. Pictures would often arrive in the wrong formats, and other media elements might be
removed such as a video clip arriving without its sound.
At the MMS World Congress in 2004 in Vienna, all European mobile operator representatives
who had launched MMS, admitted their MMS services were not making money for their
networks. Also on all networks at the time, the most common uses were various adult oriented
services that had been deployed using MMS.
China was one of the early markets to make MMS a major commercial success partly as the
penetration rate of personal computers was modest but MMS-capable cameraphones spread
rapidly. The chairman and CEO of China Mobile said at the GSM Association Mobile Asia
Congress in 2009 that MMS in China is now a mature service on par with SMS text messaging.
Europe's most advanced MMS market has been Norway and in 2008 the Norwegian MMS usage
level had passed 84% of all mobile phone subscribers. Norwegian mobile subscribers average
one MMS sent per week.
By 2008 worldwide MMS usage level had passed 1.3 billion active users who generated 50
billion MMS messages and produced annual revenues of 26 billion dollars.
Technical description
MMS messages are delivered in a completely different way from SMS. The first step is for the
sending device to encode the multimedia content in a fashion similar to sending a MIME e-mail
(MIME content formats are defined in the MMS Message Encapsulation specification). The
message is then forwarded to the carrier's MMS store and forward server, known as
the MMSC (Multimedia Messaging Service Centre). If the receiver is on another carrier, the
relay forwards the message to the recipient's carrier using the Internet.[5]
Once the MMSC has received a message, it first determines whether the receiver's handset is
"MMS capable", that it supports the standards for receiving MMS. If so, the content is extracted
and sent to a temporary storage server with an HTTP front-end. An SMS "control message"
containing the URL of the content is then sent to the recipient's handset to trigger the
receiver's WAP browser to open and receive the content from the embedded URL. Several other
messages are exchanged to indicate status of the delivery attempt. Before delivering content,
62
some MMSCs also include a conversion service that will attempt to modify the multimedia
content into a format suitable for the receiver. This is known as "content adaptation".
If the receiver's handset is not MMS capable, the message is usually delivered to a web based
service from where the content can be viewed from a normal internet browser. The URL for the
content is usually sent to the receiver's phone in a normal text message. This behaviour is usually
known as the "legacy experience" since content can still be received by a phone number, even if
the phone itself does not support MMS.
The method for determining whether a handset is MMS capable is not specified by the standards.
A database is usually maintained by the operator, and in it each mobile phone number is marked
as being associated with a legacy handset or not. It can be a touch 'hit or miss', since customers
can change their handset at will and this database is not usually updated dynamically.
MMS does not utilize one's own operator maintained data plan to distribute multimedia content.
Operator maintained data plans are only used when message included links (if any) are explicitly
clicked.
E-mail and web-based gateways to the MMS (and SMS) system are common. On the reception
side, the content servers can typically receive service requests both from WAP and
normal HTTP browsers, so delivery via the web is simple. For sending from external sources to
handsets, most carriers allow MIME encoded message to be sent to the receiver's phone number
with a special domain. An example of this would be [email protected], where PTN is
the public telephone number. Typically the special domain name is carrier specific.
63
Challenges
There are some interesting challenges with MMS that do not exist with SMS:
Handset configuration can cause problems sending and receiving MMS messages.
Content adaptation: Multimedia content created by one brand of MMS phone may not be
entirely compatible with the capabilities of the recipient's MMS phone. In the MMS
architecture, the recipient MMSC is responsible for providing for content adaptation (e.g.,
image resizing, audio codec transcoding, etc.), if this feature is enabled by the mobile
network operator. When content adaptation is supported by a network operator, its MMS
subscribers enjoy compatibility with a larger network of MMS users than would otherwise
be available.
Distribution lists: Current MMS specifications do not include distribution lists nor methods
by which large numbers of recipients can be conveniently addressed, particularly by content
providers, called Value-added service providers (VASPs) in 3GPP. Since most SMSC
vendors have adopted FTP as an ad-hoc method by which large distribution lists are
transferred to the SMSC prior to being used in a bulk-messaging SMS submission, it is
expected that MMSC vendors will also adopt FTP.
Bulk messaging: The flow of peer-to-peer MMS messaging involves several over-the-air
transactions that become inefficient when MMS is used to send messages to large numbers
of subscribers, as is typically the case for VASPs. For example, when one MMS message is
64
submitted to a very large number of recipients, it is possible to receive a delivery
report and read-reply report for each and every recipient. Future MMS specification work is
likely to optimize and reduce the transactional overhead for the bulk-messaging case.
Handset Configuration: Unlike SMS, MMS requires a number of handset parameters to be
set. Poor handset configuration is often blamed as the first point of failure for many users.
Service settings are sometimes preconfigured on the handset, but mobile operators are now
looking at new device management technologies as a means of delivering the necessary
settings for data services (MMS, WAP, etc.) via over-the-air programming (OTA).
WAP Push: Few mobile network operators offer direct connectivity to their MMSCs for
content providers. This has resulted in many content providers using WAP push as the only
method available to deliver 'rich content' to mobile handsets. WAP push enables 'rich
content' to be delivered to a handset by specifying the URL (via binary SMS) of a precompiled MMS, hosted on a content provider's web server. A consequence is that the
receiver who pays WAP per kb or minute (as opposed to a flat monthly fee) pays for
receiving the MMS, as opposed to only paying for sending one, and also paying a different
rate.
Although the standard does not specify a maximum size for a message, 300 kB is the current
recommended size used by networks due to some limitations on the WAP gateway side
Interfaces
65
Chapter-11
Bluetooth
Bluetooth
Bluetooth
Developed by Bluetooth Special Interest Group
Industry
Mobile personal area networks
Compatible
Mobile
hardware
computers, Laptop computers
Physical
Up to 50 metres
phones, Personal
range
Bluetooth is a wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances (using
short-wavelength microwave transmissions in the ISM band from 2400–2480 MHz) from fixed
and mobile devices,
building personal
area networks (PANs).
Invented by telecom
vendor Ericsson in 1994 it was originally conceived as a wireless alternative to RS-232 data
cables. It can connect several devices, overcoming problems of synchronization.
Bluetooth is managed by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, which has more than 19,000
member companies in the areas of telecommunication, computing, networking, and consumer
electronics.
Bluetooth was standardized as IEEE 802.15.1, but the standard is no longer maintained. The
SIG oversees the development of the specification, manages the qualification program, and
protects the trademarks. To be marketed as a Bluetooth device, it must be qualified to standards
66
defined by the SIG.
]
A network of patents is required to implement the technology, which is
licensed only for that qualifying device.
Name and logo
Bluetooth logo
The word "Bluetooth" is an anglicized version of the Scandinavian Blåtand/Blåtann,
the epithet of the tenth-century king Harald Bluetooth who united dissonant Danish tribes into a
single kingdom, according to legend, introducing Christianity as well. The idea of this name was
proposed in 1997 by Jim Kardach who developed a system that would allow mobile phones to
communicate with computers (at the time he was reading Frans Gunnar Bengtsson's historical
novelThe Long Ships about Vikings and king Harald Bluetooth).[7][8] The implication is that
Bluetooth does the same with communications protocols, uniting them into one universal
standard.
Implementation
Bluetooth operates in the range of 2400–2483.5 MHz (including guard bands). This is in the
globally unlicensed (but not unregulated) Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) 2.4 GHz
short-range radio frequency band. Bluetooth uses a radio technology called frequency-hopping
spread spectrum. The transmitted data is divided into packets and each packet is transmitted on
one of the 79 designated Bluetooth channels. Each channel has a bandwidth of 1 MHz. The first
67
channel starts at 2402 MHz and continues up to 2480 MHz in 1 MHz steps. It usually performs
1600 hops per second, with Adaptive Frequency-Hopping (AFH) enabled
Originally Gaussian frequency-shift keying (GFSK) modulation was the only modulation scheme
available; subsequently, since the introduction of Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, π/4-DQPSK and 8DPSK
modulation may also be used between compatible devices. Devices functioning with GFSK are
said to be operating in basic rate (BR) mode where an instantaneous data rate of 1 Mbit/s is
possible. The term Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) is used to describe π/4-DPSK and 8DPSK
schemes, each giving 2 and 3 Mbit/s respectively. The combination of these (BR and EDR)
modes in Bluetooth radio technology is classified as a "BR/EDR radio".
Bluetooth is a packet-based protocol with a master-slave structure. One master may
communicate with up to 7 slaves in a piconet; all devices share the master's clock. Packet
exchange is based on the basic clock, defined by the master, which ticks at 312.5 µs intervals.
Two clock ticks make up a slot of 625 µs; two slots make up a slot pair of 1250 µs. In the simple
case of single-slot packets the master transmits in even slots and receives in odd slots; the slave,
conversely, receives in even slots and transmits in odd slots. Packets may be 1, 3 or 5 slots long
but in all cases the master transmit will begin in even slots and the slave transmit in odd slots.
Communication and connection
A master Bluetooth device can communicate with a maximum of seven devices in a piconet (an
ad-hoc computer network using Bluetooth technology), though not all devices reach this
maximum. The devices can switch roles, by agreement, and the slave can become the master (for
example, a headset initiating a connection to a phone will necessarily begin as master, as initiator
of the connection; but may subsequently prefer to be slave).
The Bluetooth Core Specification provides for the connection of two or more piconets to form
a scatternet, in which certain devices simultaneously play the master role in one piconet and the
slave role in another.
At any given time, data can be transferred between the master and one other device (except for
the little-used broadcast mode. The master chooses which slave device to address; typically, it
switches rapidly from one device to another in around-robin fashion. Since it is the master that
chooses which slave to address, whereas a slave is (in theory) supposed to listen in each receive
68
slot, being a master is a lighter burden than being a slave. Being a master of seven slaves is
possible; being a slave of more than one master is difficult. The specification is vague as to
required behavior in scatternets.
Many USB Bluetooth adapters or "dongles" are available, some of which also include
an IrDA adapter.
Uses
Bluetooth is a standard wire-replacement communications protocol primarily designed for low
power consumption, with a short range (power-class-dependent, but effective ranges vary in
practice; see table below) based on low-cost transceiver microchips in each device. Because the
devices use a radio (broadcast) communications system, they do not have to be in visual line of
sight of each other, however a quasi optical wireless path must be viable.
Maximum permitted power
Typ. Range
Class
(m)
(mW)
(dBm)
Class 1 100
20
~100[14]
Class 2 2.5
4
~10[14]
Class 3 1
0
~1[14]
The effective range varies due to propagation conditions, material coverage, production sample
variations, antenna configurations and battery conditions. Most Bluetooth applications are in
indoor conditions, where attenuation of walls and signal fading due to signal reflections will
cause the range to be far lower than the specified line-of-sight ranges of the Bluetooth products.
Most Bluetooth applications are battery powered Class 2 devices, with little difference in range
whether the other end of the link is a Class 1 or Class 2 device as the lower powered device tends
to set the range limit. In some cases the effective range of the data link can be extended when a
69
Class 2 devices is connecting to a Class 1 transceiver with both higher sensitivity and
transmission power than a typical Class 2 device. Mostly however the Class 1 devices have a
similar sensitivity to Class 2 devices. Connecting two Class 1 devices with both high sensitivity
and high power can allow ranges far in excess of the typical 100m, depending on the throughput
required by the application. Some such devices allow open field ranges of up to 1 km and beyond
between two similar devices without exceeding legal emission limits.
Version
Data rate Maximum application throughput
Version 1.2
1 Mbit/s >80 kbit/s
Version 2.0 + EDR 3 Mbit/s >80 kbit/s
Version 3.0 + HS
24 Mbit/s See Version 3.0+HS.
Version 4.0
24 Mbit/s See Version 4.0LE.
While the Bluetooth Core Specification does mandate minima for range, the range of the
technology is application specific and is not limited. Manufacturers may tune their
implementations to the range needed for individual use cases.
Bluetooth profiles
To use Bluetooth wireless technology, a device has to be able to interpret certain Bluetooth
profiles, which are definitions of possible applications and specify general behaviors that
Bluetooth enabled devices use to communicate with other Bluetooth devices. These profiles
include settings to parametrize and to control the communication from start. Adherence to
profiles saves the time for transmitting the parameters anew before the bi-directional link
becomes effective. There are a wide range of Bluetooth profiles that describe many different
types of applications or use cases for devices.
70
Chapter-12
List of Applications
Phone Headset
A typical Bluetooth mobile phone headset.
Wireless control of and communication between a mobile phone and a handsfreeheadset.
This was one of the earliest applications to become popular.
Wireless control of and communication between a mobile phone and a Bluetooth compatible
car stereo system.
Wireless Bluetooth headset and Intercom. Idiomatically, a headset is sometimes called "a
Bluetooth".
Wireless networking between PCs in a confined space and where little bandwidth is required.
Wireless communication with PC input and output devices, the most common being
the mouse, keyboard and printer.
Transfer of files, contact details, calendar appointments, and reminders between devices
with OBEX.
71
Replacement of previous wired RS-232 serial communications in test equipment, GPS
receivers, medical equipment, bar code scanners, and traffic control devices.
For controls where infrared was often used.
For low bandwidth applications where higher USB bandwidth is not required and cable-free
connection desired.
Sending small advertisements from Bluetooth-enabled advertising hoardings to other,
discoverable, Bluetooth devices.
Wireless bridge between two Industrial Ethernet (e.g., PROFINET) networks.
Three seventh and eighth generation game consoles, Nintendo's Wii. and Sony's PlayStation
3, use Bluetooth for their respective wireless controllers.
Dial-up internet access on personal computers or PDAs using a data-capable mobile phone
as a wireless modem.
Short range transmission of health sensor data from medical devices to mobile phone, set-top
box or dedicated telehealthdevices.
Allowing a DECT phone to ring and answer calls on behalf of a nearby mobile phone.
Real-time location systems (RTLS), are used to track and identify the location of objects in
real-time using ―Nodes‖ or ―tags‖ attached to, or embedded in the objects tracked, and
―Readers‖ that receive and process the wireless signals from these tags to determine their
locations.
Personal security application on mobile phones for prevention of theft or loss of items. The
protected item has a Bluetooth marker (e.g. a tag) that is in constant communication with the
phone. If the connection is broken (the marker is out of range of the phone) then an alarm is
raised. This can also be used as a man overboard alarm. A product using this technology has
been available since 2009.
Calgary, Alberta, Canada's Roads Traffic division uses data collected from travelers'
Bluetooth devices to predict travel times and road congestion for motorists.
Bluetooth vs. Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11)
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi (the brand name for products using IEEE 802.11 standards) have some
similar applications: setting up networks, printing, or transferring files. Wi-Fi is intended as a
replacement for high speed cabling for general local area network access in work areas. This
72
category of applications is sometimes called wireless local area networks (WLAN). Bluetooth
was intended for portable equipment and its applications. The category of applications is outlined
as the wireless personal area network (WPAN). Bluetooth is a replacement for cabling in a
variety of personally carried applications in any setting and also works for fixed location
applications such as smart energy functionality in the home (thermostats, etc.).
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are to some extent complementary in their applications and usage. Wi-Fi is
usually access point-centered, with an asymmetrical client-server connection with all traffic
routed through the access point, while Bluetooth is usually symmetrical, between two Bluetooth
devices. Bluetooth serves well in simple applications where two devices need to connect with
minimal configuration like a button press, as in headsets and remote controls, while Wi-Fi suits
better in applications where some degree of client configuration is possible and high speeds are
required, especially for network access through an access node. However, Bluetooth access
points do exist and ad-hoc connections are possible with Wi-Fi though not as simply as with
Bluetooth. Wi-Fi Directwas recently developed to add a more Bluetooth-like ad-hoc
functionality to Wi-Fi.
Devices
A Bluetooth USB dongle with a 100 m range.
Bluetooth exists in many products, such as telephones, tablets, media players, Lego Mindstorms
NXT, PlayStation 3, PS Vita, the Nintendo Wii, and some high definitionheadsets, modems, and
watches.[27] The technology is useful when transferring information between two or more devices
that are near each other in low-bandwidth situations. Bluetooth is commonly used to transfer
73
sound data with telephones (i.e., with a Bluetooth headset) or byte data with hand-held
computers (transferring files).
Bluetooth protocols simplify the discovery and setup of services between devices. Bluetooth
devices can advertise all of the services they provide.
This makes using services easier because more of the security, network address and permission
configuration can be automated than with many other network types.
Computer requirements
A typical Bluetooth USB dongle.
An internal notebook Bluetooth card (14×36×4 mm).
A personal computer that does not have embedded Bluetooth can be used with a Bluetooth
adapter that will enable the PC to communicate with other Bluetooth devices. While
74
some desktop computers and most recent laptops come with a built-in Bluetooth radio, others
will require an external one in the form of a dongle.
Unlike its predecessor, IrDA, which requires a separate adapter for each device, Bluetooth allows
multiple devices to communicate with a computer over a single adapter.
Operating system implementation
Apple products have worked with Bluetooth since Mac OS X v10.2 which was released in 2002.
For Microsoft platforms, Windows XP Service Pack 2 and SP3 releases work natively with
Bluetooth 1.1, 2.0 and 2.0+EDR.[31] Previous versions required users to install their Bluetooth
adapter's own drivers, which were not directly supported by Microsoft
Microsoft's own Bluetooth dongles (packaged with their Bluetooth computer devices) have no
external drivers and thus require at least Windows XP Service Pack 2. Windows Vista RTM/SP1
with the Feature Pack for Wireless or Windows Vista SP2 work with Bluetooth
2.1+EDR Windows 7 works with Bluetooth 2.1+EDR and Extended Inquiry Response (EIR).
The Windows XP and Windows Vista/Windows 7 Bluetooth stacks support the following
Bluetooth profiles natively: PAN, SPP, DUN, HID, HCRP. The Windows XP stack can be
replaced by a third party stack which may support more profiles or newer versions of Bluetooth.
The Windows Vista/Windows 7 Bluetooth stack supports vendor-supplied additional profiles
without requiring the Microsoft stack to be replaced.
Linux has two popular Bluetooth stacks, BlueZ and Affix. The BlueZ stack is included with most
Linux kernels and was originally developed by Qualcomm. The Affix stack was developed
by Nokia. FreeBSD features Bluetooth since its 5.0 release. NetBSDfeatures Bluetooth since its
4.0 release. Its Bluetooth stack has been ported to OpenBSD as well.
Specifications and features
The Bluetooth specification was developed as a cable replacement in 1994 by Jaap Haartsen and
Sven Mattisson, who were working for Ericsson in Lund, Sweden.[34] The specification is based
on frequency-hopping spread spectrum technology.
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The specifications were formalized by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). The SIG was
formally announced on 20 May 1998. Today it has a membership of over 19,000 companies
worldwide. It was established by Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Toshiba and Nokia, and later joined by
many other companies.
All versions of the Bluetooth standards are designed for downward compatibility. That lets the
latest standard cover all older versions.
Bluetooth v1.0 and v1.0B
Versions 1.0 and 1.0B had many problems, and manufacturers had difficulty making their
products interoperable. Versions 1.0 and 1.0B also included mandatory Bluetooth hardware
device address (BD_ADDR) transmission in the Connecting process (rendering anonymity
impossible at the protocol level), which was a major setback for certain services planned for use
in Bluetooth environments.
Bluetooth v1.1
Many errors found in the 1.0B specifications were fixed.
Added possibility of non-encrypted channels.
Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI).
Bluetooth v1.2
Major enhancements include the following:
Faster Connection and Discovery
Adaptive frequency-hopping spread spectrum (AFH), which improves resistance to radio
frequency interference by avoiding the use of crowded frequencies in the hopping sequence.
Higher transmission speeds in practice, up to 721 kbit/s, than in v1.1.
Extended Synchronous Connections (eSCO), which improve voice quality of audio links by
allowing retransmissions of corrupted packets, and may optionally increase audio latency to
provide better concurrent data transfer.
Host Controller Interface (HCI) operation with three-wire UART.
Ratified as IEEE Standard 802.15.1–2005
Introduced Flow Control and Retransmission Modes for L2CAP.
76
Bluetooth v2.0 + EDR
This version of the Bluetooth Core Specification was released in 2004. The main difference is
the introduction of an Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) for faster data transfer. The nominal rate of
EDR is about 3 Mbit/s, although the practical data transfer rate is 2.1 Mbit/s. EDR uses a
combination of GFSK and Phase Shift Keying modulation (PSK) with two variants, π/4DQPSK and 8DPSK.[38] EDR can provide a lower power consumption through a reduced duty
cycle.
The specification is published as "Bluetooth v2.0 + EDR" which implies that EDR is an optional
feature. Aside from EDR, there are other minor improvements to the 2.0 specification, and
products may claim compliance to "Bluetooth v2.0" without supporting the higher data rate. At
least one commercial device states "Bluetooth v2.0 without EDR" on its data sheet
Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR
Bluetooth Core Specification Version 2.1 + EDR was adopted by the Bluetooth SIG on 26 July
2007.
The headline feature of 2.1 is secure simple pairing (SSP): this improves the pairing experience
for Bluetooth devices, while increasing the use and strength of security. See the section
on Pairing below for more details
2.1 allows various other improvements, including "Extended inquiry response" (EIR), which
provides more information during the inquiry procedure to allow better filtering of devices
before connection; and sniff subrating, which reduces the power consumption in low-power
mode.
Bluetooth v3.0 + HS
Version 3.0 + HS of the Bluetooth Core Specification was adopted by the Bluetooth SIG on 21
April 2009. Bluetooth 3.0+HS provides theoretical data transfer speeds of up to 24
Mbit/s, though not over the Bluetooth link itself. Instead, the Bluetooth link is used for
negotiation and establishment, and the high data rate traffic is carried over a
collocated 802.11 link.
The main new feature is AMP (Alternative MAC/PHY), the addition of 802.11 as a high speed
transport. The High-Speed part of the specification is not mandatory, and hence only devices
77
sporting the "+HS" will actually support the Bluetooth over 802.11 high-speed data transfer. A
Bluetooth 3.0 device without the "+HS" suffix will not support High Speed, and needs to only
support a feature introduced in Core Specification Version 3.0 or earlier Core Specification
Addendum 1.
L2CAP Enhanced modes
Enhanced Retransmission Mode (ERTM) implements reliable L2CAP channel, while
Streaming Mode (SM) implements unreliable channel with no retransmission or flow
control. Introduced in Core Specification Addendum 1.
Alternative MAC/PHY
Enables the use of alternative MAC and PHYs for transporting Bluetooth profile data.
The Bluetooth radio is still used for device discovery, initial connection and profile
configuration, however when large quantities of data need to be sent, the high speed
alternative MAC PHY 802.11 (typically associated with Wi-Fi) will be used to transport
the data. This means that the proven low power connection models of Bluetooth are used
when the system is idle, and the faster radio is used when large quantities of data need to
be sent. AMP links require enhanced L2CAP modes.
Unicast Connectionless Data
Permits service data to be sent without establishing an explicit L2CAP channel. It is
intended for use by applications that require low latency between user action and
reconnection/transmission of data. This is only appropriate for small amounts of data.
Enhanced Power Control
Updates the power control feature to remove the open loop power control, and also to
clarify ambiguities in power control introduced by the new modulation schemes added
for EDR. Enhanced power control removes the ambiguities by specifying the behaviour
that is expected. The feature also adds closed loop power control, meaning RSSI filtering
can start as the response is received. Additionally, a "go straight to maximum power"
request has been introduced. This is expected to deal with the headset link loss issue
typically observed when a user puts their phone into a pocket on the opposite side to the
headset.
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Ultra-wideband
The high speed (AMP) feature of Bluetooth v3.0 was originally intended
for UWB, but the WiMedia Alliance, the body responsible for the flavor of
UWB intended for Bluetooth, announced in March 2009 that it was disbanding,
and ultimately UWB was omitted from the Core v3.0 specification.[43]
On 16 March 2009, the WiMedia Alliance announced it was entering into
technology transfer agreements for the WiMedia Ultra-wideband (UWB)
specifications. WiMedia has transferred all current and future specifications,
including work on future high speed and power optimized implementations, to
the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), Wireless USB Promoter Group and
the USB Implementers Forum. After the successful completion of the technology
transfer, marketing and related administrative items, the WiMedia Alliance will
cease operations.
In October 2009 the Bluetooth Special Interest Group suspended development of
UWB as part of the alternative MAC/PHY, Bluetooth v3.0 + HS solution. A
small, but significant, number of former WiMedia members had not and would
not sign up to the necessary agreements for the IP transfer. The Bluetooth SIG is
now in the process of evaluating other options for its longer term roadmap.
Bluetooth Smart (v4.0)
The Bluetooth SIG completed the Bluetooth Core Specification version 4.0
(called Bluetooth Smart) and has been adopted as of 30 June 2010. It
includes Classic
Bluetooth, Bluetooth
high
speed and Bluetooth
low
energy protocols. Bluetooth high speed is based on Wi-Fi, and Classic Bluetooth
consists of legacy Bluetooth protocols.
Bluetooth low energy (BLE), previously known as WiBree is a subset of
Bluetooth v4.0 with an entirely new protocol stack for rapid build-up of simple
links. As an alternative to the Bluetooth standard protocols that were introduced
in Bluetooth v1.0 to v3.0, it is aimed at very low power applications running off
a coin cell. Chip designs allow for two types of implementation, dual-mode,
single-mode
and
enhanced
79
past
versions.
The
provisional
names Wibree and Bluetooth ULP (Ultra Low Power) were abandoned and the
BLE name was used for a while. In late 2011, new logos ―Bluetooth Smart
Ready‖ for hosts and ―Bluetooth Smart‖ for sensors were introduced as the
general-public face of BLE.
In a single mode implementation the low energy protocol stack is implemented
solely. CSR,
Nordic Semiconductor andTexas Instruments[56] have released single mode
Bluetooth low energy solutions.
In a dual-mode implementation, Bluetooth low energy functionality is
integrated into an existing Classic Bluetooth controller. Currently (2011-03)
the following semiconductor companies have announced the availability of
chips meeting the standard:Qualcomm-Atheros, CSR, Broadcom and Texas
Instruments. The compliant architecture shares all of Classic Bluetooth‘s
existing radio and functionality resulting in a negligible cost increase
compared to Classic Bluetooth.
Cost-reduced single-mode chips, which enable highly integrated and compact
devices, feature a lightweight Link Layer providing ultra-low power idle mode
operation, simple device discovery, and reliable point-to-multipoint data transfer
with advanced power-save and secure encrypted connections at the lowest
possible cost.
General improvements in version 4.0 include the changes necessary to facilitate
BLE modes, as well the Generic Attribute Profile (GATT) and Security Manager
(SM) services with AES Encryption.
Core Specification Addendum 2 was unveiled in December 2011; it contains
improvements to the audio Host Controller Interface and to the High Speed
(802.11) Protocol Adaptation Layer.
Core Specification Addendum 3 revision 2 has an adoption date of July 24, 2012.
Core Specification Addendum 4 has an adoption date of February 12, 2013.
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Bluetooth specification Version 4.1 was officially announced in December 4,
2013.
Technical information
Bluetooth protocol stack
Bluetooth Protocol Stack
Bluetooth is defined as a layer protocol architecture consisting of core protocols,
cable replacement protocols, telephony control protocols, and adopted
protocols.[60]Mandatory protocols for all Bluetooth stacks are: LMP, L2CAP and
SDP. In addition, devices that communicate with Bluetooth almost universally
can use these protocols:HCI and RFCOMM.
LMP
The Link Management Protocol (LMP) is used for set-up and control of the radio
link between two devices. Implemented on the controller.
AVRCP
Audio/Video Remote Control Profile. AVRCP is designed to provide a standard
interface to control TVs, hi-fi equipment, or others to allow a single remote
control (or other device) to control all the A/V equipment to which a user has
access. It may be used in concert with A2DP or VDP Commonly used in car
navigation systems to control streaming Bluetooth audio. Adopted versions 1.0,
1.3, 1.4 & 1.5
L2CAP
The Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) Used to multiplex
multiple logical connections between two devices using different higher level
protocols. Provides segmentation and reassembly of on-air packets.
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In Basic mode, L2CAP provides packets with a payload configurable up to
64 kB, with 672 bytes as the default MTU, and 48 bytes as the minimum
mandatory supported MTU.
In Retransmission and Flow Control modes, L2CAP can be configured either for
isochronous data or reliable data per channel by performing retransmissions and
CRC checks.
Bluetooth Core Specification Addendum 1 adds two additional L2CAP modes to
the
core
specification.
These
modes
effectively
deprecate
original
Retransmission and Flow Control modes:
Enhanced Retransmission Mode (ERTM): This mode is an improved version
of the original retransmission mode. This mode provides a reliable L2CAP
channel.
Streaming Mode (SM): This is a very simple mode, with no retransmission
or flow control. This mode provides an unreliable L2CAP channel.
Reliability in any of these modes is optionally and/or additionally guaranteed by
the lower layer Bluetooth BDR/EDR air interface by configuring the number of
retransmissions and flush timeout (time after which the radio will flush packets).
In-order sequencing is guaranteed by the lower layer.
Only L2CAP channels configured in ERTM or SM may be operated over AMP
logical links.
SDP
The Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) allows a device to discover services
offered by other devices, and their associated parameters. For example, when
you use a mobile phone with a Bluetooth headset, the phone uses SDP to
determine which Bluetooth profiles the headset can use (Headset Profile, Hands
Free Profile, Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) etc.) and the protocol
multiplexer settings needed for the phone to connect to the headset using each of
them. Each service is identified by a Universally Unique Identifier (UUID), with
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official services (Bluetooth profiles) assigned a short form UUID (16 bits rather
than the full 128).
RFCOMM
Radio Frequency Communications (RFCOMM) is a cable replacement protocol
used to generate a virtual serial data stream. RFCOMM provides for binary data
transport and emulates EIA-232 (formerly RS-232) control signals over the
Bluetooth baseband layer, i.e. it is a serial port emulation.
RFCOMM provides a simple reliable data stream to the user, similar to TCP. It
is used directly by many telephony related profiles as a carrier for AT
commands, as well as being a transport layer for OBEX over Bluetooth.
Many Bluetooth applications use RFCOMM because of its widespread support
and publicly available API on most operating systems. Additionally, applications
that used a serial port to communicate can be quickly ported to use RFCOMM.
BNEP
The Bluetooth Network Encapsulation Protocol (BNEP) is used for transferring
another protocol stack's data via an L2CAP channel. Its main purpose is the
transmission of IP packets in the Personal Area Networking Profile. BNEP
performs a similar function to SNAP in Wireless LAN.
AVCTP
The Audio/Video Control Transport Protocol (AVCTP) is used by the remote
control profile to transfer AV/C commands over an L2CAP channel. The music
control buttons on a stereo headset use this protocol to control the music player.
AVDTP
The Audio/Video Distribution Transport Protocol (AVDTP) is used by the
advanced audio distribution profile to stream music to stereo headsets over an
L2CAP channel. Intended to be used by video distribution profile in the
bluetooth transmission.
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TCS
The Telephony Control Protocol – Binary (TCS BIN) is the bit-oriented protocol
that defines the call control signaling for the establishment of voice and data
calls between Bluetooth devices. Additionally, "TCS BIN defines mobility
management procedures for handling groups of Bluetooth TCS devices."
TCS-BIN is only used by the cordless telephony profile, which failed to attract
implementers. As such it is only of historical interest.
Adopted protocols
Adopted protocols are defined by other standards-making organizations and
incorporated into Bluetooth‘s protocol stack, allowing Bluetooth to code
protocols only when necessary. The adopted protocols include:
Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)
Internet standard protocol for transporting IP datagrams over a point-to-point link.
TCP/IP/UDP
Foundation Protocols for TCP/IP protocol suite
Object Exchange Protocol (OBEX)
Session-layer protocol for the exchange of objects, providing a model for object and
operation representation
Wireless Application Environment/Wireless Application Protocol
(WAE/WAP)
WAE specifies an application framework for wireless devices and WAP is an open
standard to provide mobile users access to telephony and information services.
Baseband error correction
Depending on packet type, individual packets may be protected
by error
correction,
either
1/3
rate forward
error
correction (FEC) or 2/3 rate. In addition, packets with CRC will
be retransmitted until acknowledged by automatic repeat
request (ARQ).
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Setting up connections
Any Bluetooth device in discoverable mode will transmit the
following information on demand:
Device name
Device class
List of services
Technical information (for example: device features,
manufacturer, Bluetooth specification used, clock offset)
Any device may perform an inquiry to find other devices to
connect to, and any device can be configured to respond to such
inquiries. However, if the device trying to connect knows the
address of the device, it always responds to direct connection
requests and transmits the information shown in the list above if
requested. Use of a device's services may require pairing or
acceptance by its owner, but the connection itself can be initiated
by any device and held until it goes out of range. Some devices
can be connected to only one device at a time, and connecting to
them prevents them from connecting to other devices and
appearing in inquiries until they disconnect from the other
device.
Every device has a unique 48-bit address. However, these
addresses are generally not shown in inquiries. Instead, friendly
Bluetooth names are used, which can be set by the user. This
name appears when another user scans for devices and in lists of
paired devices.
Most phones have the Bluetooth name set to the manufacturer
and model of the phone by default. Most phones and laptops
show only the Bluetooth names and special programs are
required to get additional information about remote devices. This
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can be confusing as, for example, there could be several phones
in range named T610 (see Bluejacking).
Pairing and bonding
Motivation
Many of the services offered over Bluetooth can expose private
data or allow the connecting party to control the Bluetooth
device. For security reasons it is necessary to be able to
recognize specific devices and thus enable control over which
devices are allowed to connect to a given Bluetooth device. At
the same time, it is useful for Bluetooth devices to be able to
establish a connection without user intervention (for example, as
soon as they are in range).
To resolve this conflict, Bluetooth uses a process called bonding,
and a bond is generated through a process called pairing. The
pairing process is triggered either by a specific request from a
user to generate a bond (for example, the user explicitly requests
to "Add a Bluetooth device"), or it is triggered automatically
when connecting to a service where (for the first time) the
identity of a device is required for security purposes. These two
cases are referred to as dedicated bonding and general bonding
respectively.
Pairing often involves some level of user interaction; this user
interaction is the basis for confirming the identity of the devices.
Once pairing successfully completes, a bond will have been
formed between the two devices, enabling those two devices to
connect to each other in the future without requiring the pairing
process in order to confirm the identity of the devices. When
desired, the bonding relationship can later be removed by the
user.
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