13.1 Introduction

The deployment of mobile networks, coupled with the rapid development in handsets and other mobile computing devices, has enabled a rapid growth in the ability to deliver advanced services to the user on the network periphery. Mobile networks are no longer considered to be a transport mechanism exclusively for voice calls growth in data services has been significant. This growth has come initially from SMS traffic, but is increasingly represented by traffic from more advanced applications such as Internet browsing and e-mail access. Currently these applications extend the reach of the desktop and provide additional means of accessing traditional information. However, there is now a trend to see new applications which are enabled by the deployment of new technology, and which are delivered to a receptive audience which is becoming increasingly familiar with the underlying technology.

Two generic areas of service provision are emerging location-based services in which the location of the mobile user is used as a parameter for service provision, and personalised services in which a personal profile can also be used as a parameter governing the supply of information to the user (see Chapter 1 for more details on personalisation). The profile could also be extended to include aspects of the network (e.g. available bandwidth or delay) and of the device (e.g. local memory, screen size and colour). This chapter examines how location-based services can be delivered with current technology, and examines two proof-of-concept demonstrator systems which are showing how this...