CTIA Wireless 2007: Keynotes and product launches to expect

Going on right now Orange country convention center in Orlando, FL, is the CTIA Wireless 2007 (March 25-29, 2007), an international wireless expo expecting more than 800 exhibitors and 40,000 attendees from 100 countries.

Highlights include conference sessions such as SmartPhone Summit and Mobile Movie Fest, a Fashion in Motion runway show of wireless fashion and accessories. The most exciting part – especially for those of us not in attendance – are the Wireless Building and International Pavilions where companies show everyone their current and upcoming goodies. A few of the companies scheduled attend include Ericsson, Microsoft, Motorola, Palm, Accenture, Applied Innovations Inc., BlackBerry, EarthLink, Gemalto, Magellan, MicroTelecom, Plantronics, Spotwave, Syniverse Technologies and Wilson Electronics Inc.

Keynote addresses and product highlights are listed after the break:

Tuesday, March 27, 2007 – Theme: Broadband Convergence

• Randall Stephenson, Chief Operating Officer, AT&T
• Pieter Knook, Sr. Vice President, Mobile & Embedded Devices, Microsoft Corporation
• Ed Zander, Chief Executive Officer, Motorola

Wednesday, March 28, 2007 – Theme: Emerging Opportunities in Wireless

• Eric Nicoli, Chief Executive Officer, EMI Group
• Sanjiv Ahuja, Chief Executive Officer, Orange Group
• Philippe P. Dauman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Viacom Inc.
• John Philip Coghlan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Visa USA

Thursday, March 29, 2007 – Theme: Presidential Perspectives

• The Honorable George H.W. Bush, 41st President of the United States
• The Honorable William J. Clinton, 42nd President of the United States

I’ll sure we’ll have plenty of products to share during and after the conference. For now, we’ll settle for this quick list of a few products expected to demo:

Applied Innovation will display an interactive kiosk within the consumer electronics superstore that urges potential subscribers to “take the challenge” and see which provider truly delivers the best wireless user experiences.

From Gemalto, attendees will see how the SIM in a phone, powered by their secure smart card, can unlock office doors – simply by transmitting a person’s corporate credentials via Near Field Communication to the contactless reader. As mobile transactions gain momentum in financial services, physical and logical access and ticketing, 3G SIMs provide the security and device mobility required to meet these needs.

The Plantronics Voyager 510SL Bluetooth Headset System offers mobile professionals hands-free convenience with a single, high-performance Bluetooth headset for both mobile and office phones. Featuring multipoint technology for easy switching between devices, attendees will see how users can take calls from either their mobile or desk phone with the touch of a button. The Plantronics Voyager 510SL System also includes a noise-canceling microphone, wind-reduction technology and provides up to 33-feet of wireless roaming distance – empowering professionals to multi-task, expand the virtual workplace and stay connected whether in the office, at home or on the go.

Magellan will showcase, NavCreator a software development kit containing navigation module APIs, based on Magellan technology that enables creation of customized navigation applications.

In the retail area, MicroTelecom 2007 will showcase its software management solutions for wireless retail, wholesale and master agents. The system includes a real time Point of Sale and remote back office modules that effectively monitor and automate business processes including purchases, back orders, inventory, sales and returns, accounting, CRM, activation tracking, commission reconciliation and more.

Motorola will be showcasing several innovative products and technologies throughout the Wireless Building and in an exclusively sponsored retail area. Among the exhibits will be Motorola’s WiMAX solutions, designed to support fixed, portable, nomadic and mobile applications as well as IPTV solutions, enabling service providers to offer subscribers the ultimate in-home video experience – high definition TV, video on demand and home media networking.

Throughout the Wireless Building Spotwave‘s SpotCell 2500X3 will seamlessly bring outdoor wireless signal inside – ensuring cell phones, PDAs and 3G laptop air cards work reliably indoors. Spotwave’s products cost-effectively solve cellular dead spots for both carriers and enterprise customers looking to boost in-building cellular signal and reception.

Also on display will be Syniverse‘s Interactive Video Response System (IVDRS), a multimedia application platform that enables operators to extend a wide range of popular revenue-generating video-based services to 3G subscribers. Attendees will be able to see real-time video surveillance, interactive video quiz games, video mail, mobile TV, multiparty conferencing that incorporates both video and voice, and more.

Conference Site [CTIA Wireless 2007]