Joint Innovation Lab Opens Widget API Specifications and Contributes Them to W3C and the Newly-Formed Wholesale Applications Community
– JIL Continues to Drive Innovation in the Mobile Apps Space by
Committing to Offer API Specifications Royalty-Free to Wireless Service
Providers Around the Globe
The Joint Innovation Lab (JIL) announced today that it will open its
widget API specification to other wireless service providers and contribute
these API specifications to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). JIL members
also announced that they will join the newly formed Wholesale Applications
Community (WAC) to ensure that mobile developers can reach as many mobile
customers as simply and as cost effectively as possible.
The move demonstrates JIL’s commitment to making its applications more
open to developers and wireless service providers.
JIL will make the widget API specifications available to any wireless
company looking to offer a development platform for mobile Web based
applications. JIL expects this will encourage broader adoption of the JIL
specification by operators and OEMs and reduce industry fragmentation. JIL
believes the availability of an open specification with broad global reach
will encourage more developers to create innovative mobile applications,
benefiting consumers through improved quality and choice.
JIL currently supports W3C widget specifications, such as the W3C
packaging and configuration API. JIL’s contribution of the widget API
specifications reinforces JIL’s commitment to support emerging World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C) standards.
“By contributing our widget API specification to the W3C, we are creating
the foundation for all wireless service providers and handset manufacturers
to participate in a common, open mobile development platform,” said
Peters Suh. “JIL remains committed to the developer community and we will
continue to take a leadership role in identifying new areas of innovation
which will ultimately lead to enhanced commercialized products and services
for our customers.”
JIL, a joint venture between China Mobile, Softbank, Verizon Wireless and
Vodafone, has launched a range of tools to encourage innovation among global
mobile developers. The tools include: a common mobile widgets specification,
easy-to-use developer kits and an online repository, distribution and payment
mechanism to ensure developers can roll out their products to customers in
more than 70 countries across
JIL also announced today that a number of handset manufacturers including
HTC, Huawei Device, Lenovo and ZTE committed to support the JIL widget
specification in addition to LG Electronics (LG), Research In Motion (RIM),
Samsung, Sharp who had previously committed to provide JIL compliant handsets.
JIL was established by China Mobile Limited, Softbank and Vodafone in
2008, with Verizon Wireless joining in 2009.
SOURCE JIL