How Mobile Technology Are in the Present and How They Will Change with the increased use of Mobile Operating Systems and Platforms - Example

Mobile Technology: What will change? Name Institute of Affiliation Date EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Mobile device technology is the fastest growing section of software development in the world today. Mobile users in the entire global business community desire to be connected to their core venture systems from their mobile devices no matter the location they are in, whether in business meetings, out to lunch, or in transit. Organizations also need their mobile users to maintain productivity regardless of the kind of device they own and their physical location. The mobile operating systems leading in market share in the Emirates are Blackberry, Android, and iOS, which have been compared in the report. As a consultant in a local consultancy company in the Emirates, my intent is to provide some recommendations for local companies and the government concerning the use of mobile operating systems and platforms. It is evident that the way of doing things is changing with the growing use of Smartphones with marketing, commerce, logistics and global competitiveness taking another turn. The report highlights how things are in the present and how they will change in the future with the increased use of mobile operating systems and platforms. These have been studied basing on their impact on local businesses and the government. The recommendations focus on embracing this technology as it has proved to be efficient and effective in delivery of services. The need to provide better usability, management, security, and integration of services carried on these platforms is highly recommended. Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 Table of Contents 3 1. Introduction 4 1.1Scope of Project 4 2.0 Operating Systems Technology and their Platforms 5 2.1 BlackBerry 5 2.2 Android 6 2.3 Apple iOS 7 2.4 Comparison of features 7 3.0 Future Developments in Mobile OS 9 3.1 Future development impact on business and government 9 3.2 Future development impact on supply chain integration 9 3.3 Mobile technology and competiveness, performance, productivity of business and government 10 4.0 Impact on Business and Government 11 5.0 Recommendations 13 6.0 Conclusion 13 References 14 1. Introduction Mobile devices are increasingly evolving into sophisticated general purpose computers and this has paved way to the establishment of a variety of operating systems (OS) and platforms in the mobile space (Muttik, 2012). The various features including processing speed, GUI, and most importantly the applications present in the mobile device depend greatly on the underlying mobile OS. A mobile OS manages the software and hardware resources of the mobile device. Some OS platforms involve the entire variety of the software stack, while others may only include the lower levels, such as the kernel and middleware layers, and depend on additional software platforms to provide a user interface framework (Muttik, 2012). Some of the leading mobile operating systems include the Blackberry OS, Google’s Android, Apple’s iOS, and Windows Phone. Others include J2ME, Linux, Symbian, LiMo, and Palm OS. Today’s mobile devices are expected to run a growing variety of software such as Internet browsers, games, navigation packages, and music/video players (Al-Khouri, 2011). Thus, application platforms are supposed to provide the base for them. Typically, mobile developers avail multiple platforms to maximize their available market although this can be a complex and time-consuming tax as multiple platforms use different API calls for common OS operations and gaining access to OS resources such as accessing files and memory (Al-Khouri, 2011). These are areas of changes that may impact how businesses and organizations interact with the Mobile operating systems technology and platforms. It is the purpose of this report to establish the expected changes and how they will impact the mobile technology industry, as well as look at how the mobile OS technology and platforms have impacted business, and government organizations. 1.1 Scope of Project A wide variety of issues can be discussed regarding the rapidly evolving field of mobile operating systems technology and platforms. However, this report will focus on the impact of these technologies to business organizations and the government. A comparative approach of the top three mobile OS/platforms namely Android, iOS, and BlackBerry is undertaken in regards to their functionality and efficacy. The report points out the changes or future developments that could take place in the OS industry and the impact it may have in organizations. 2.0 Operating Systems Technology and their Platforms A mobile operating system (Mobile OS) is the software platform on which other programs run (Muttik, 2012). In the contemporary world, mobile devices are multifunctional with the capability to host a broad variety of applications for both business and consumer utilization. When a consumer purchases a mobile device, the manufacturer will have selected the OS for that specific device. The role of the OS is determining the features and functions available on the mobile device such as keyboards, WAP, thumbwheel, synchronization with applications, text-messaging, and e-mail among many more (Trend Micro Inc., 2012). In this competitive field, it is usual to find some platforms more mature than others and others maintaining an innovative spirit throughout the development phase. 2.1 BlackBerry The BlackBerry is one of the most popular mobile device platforms and scores very highly among the emerging consumer mobile platforms (Trend Micro Inc., 2012). The OS is centred on easy operation and originally was designed for business. It has been rated as one of the best for mobile email although its functionality as an application device needs further fine-tuning. When it entered the market, there were limited BlackBerry programs to choose from but recently this has changed and it provides full multimedia support (Sugiharto, 2010). There are thousands of options to choose from productivity applications to games. Corporate-grade security and manageability make the BlackBerry platform the preferred option for the most stringent roles of mobile devices. The Blackberry OS provides multi-tasking and supports specialized input devices for use on its handhelds, particularly the trackball, trackwheel, and most recently, the touchscreen and trackpad. The latest Blackberry OS has the same professional home screen as the previous version. The swipe-up application menu is incorporated on the bottom of the screen, similar to Android’s pull-down menu (Sugiharto, 2010). 2.2 Android Android was developed by Google Inc and is an Open Source. The OS has a cult following among programmers excited to develop apps from its flexible, Open Source availability (Trend Micro Inc. 2012). Some important security additions have been added to the Android recently. These include device encryption support, although important features such as a good Mobile Device Management APIs and dependable control of the overall operating system versioning and application ecosystem are conspicuously absent. According to experts, Android is widely exposed to malware and loss of data, and the platform fragmentation that results from the rich OEM ecosystem has proved quite challenging for the adoption of the enterprise. Nevertheless, Android promises to give developers access to every aspect of the phone’s operation. This enables many to foresee the promise of further growth for the Android platform. The Android 2.3 user interface is loaded with many new colour schemes and various changes have been made in the user interface. Changes in settings and menus enable ease of use by mobile users to navigate and control the system and device features (Sugiharto, 2010). 2.3 Apple iOS The iOS is derived from Mac OS X and has four abstraction layers. These are the Core OS, the Core Services, the Media, and the Cocoa Touch layers (Sugiharto, 2010). Apple’s proprietary approach has become more enterprise friendly and the company’s exertion of strict control has ensured the production of a more secure and manageable platform in the consumer mobile segment. Apple iOS security and manageability are currently good enough to be considered for mobility roles that require policy control and device encryption. The iOS user interface is bright with finger friendly icons and colour fonts and schemes that are pleasing, as well as awesome menu transitions. The interface is visually striking (Sugiharto, 2010). 2.4 Comparison of features Operating Systems Feature Blackberry OS Android iOS Front facing Video Conference Yes Limited support Yes Desktop interactive gadgets No Yes No Bluetooth keyboard Yes No Yes MS/Office editing Yes 3rd Party Apps Yes Printer Support Yes 3rd Party Apps Yes Desktop Sync Yes 3rd Party Apps Yes Turn by Turn GPS 3rd Party Apps Google Maps Nav 3rd Party Apps Voice Recognition Yes Yes No Flash Support No Yes No Local Full Backup Yes No Yes The operating systems and platforms can also be compared with regards to the application support, device support and performance (Muttik, 2012). Many applications for the Android are lacking as its market place is not full of applications. However, the count for entire number of applications is increasing on a daily basis. There are also not many applications for the BlackBerry platform but one can certainly find all the major applications in the BlackBerry App World. The App Store has the highest number of applications than any other App Store available in the market and applications for almost everything can be found. Thus, the iOS is leading in regards to application support (Muttik, 2012). With regards to performance, Android supports a type of a dual core processor whereas BlackBerry and Apple intend to include the dual core processor support in their future Smartphones. Thus, Android takes the winner position for performance as it would have improved further when competitors attempt to catch up (Muttik, 2012). With regards to device support, Android is an open source OS while Blackberry and iOS are closed. Thus, any mobile manufacturer can integrate this particular OS in their mobile phones, making Android the winner for device support (Muttik, 2012). 3.0 Future Developments in Mobile OS The Mobile OS and platforms is a quickly changing industry, and the mobile space presents opportunities and significant challenges for business and organizations alike. Nevertheless, there are clear trends coming up that point towards an expansion of cross-platform frameworks, although there lacks clarity and certainty in this option. 3.1 Future development impact on business and government Users of mobile device technologies have changed dramatically over the past few years. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was only the major business people that could afford a Smartphone (Muttik, 2012; Zhao et al., 2009). However, with Internet advancement and the intelligent network benefit in the late 1990s, the usability of the Smartphone has grown rapidly and can be afforded not only by big enterprises, but small ones as well. The mobile device technologies are also being incorporated in government services in the Emirates where their uses are becoming popular. 3.2 Future development impact on supply chain integration An increasing number of supply chain managers are expected to use their Smartphones to conduct their tasks in the future as the trend has already picked up (Zhao et al. 2009). Currently, they have mainly used these mobile device technologies to improve the flow of information around the supply chain. For example, transmitting tracking data and reports, or causing alerts immediately a business process deviates from the schedule. Currently, the mailbox is still the supply chain manager’s main tool in the present but this may change in the future with the increasing innovative developments of mobile operating systems platforms. Smartphones such as the Blackberry and iPhone are capable of running complete operating system software, and they provide a platform for applications to help the user to perform singular or multiple tasks. The supply chain will benefit from Apps that are location-based such as social networking and those that use maps and transportation information such as Android’s Google maps. Other supply chain functions that will benefit from mobile OS and platforms include tracking, control, messaging and timekeeping. Thus, the impact of the technology in the supply chain integration in the future is enhancing productivity, reducing employee turnover, and improving responsiveness to customers (Zhao et al., 2009). 3.3 Mobile technology and competiveness, performance, productivity of business and government Without a doubt, there is blooming innovation and competition in the Mobile OS Space. Factors that influence the choice and preference for a particular Mobile OS platform and which determines the area for future development mostly revolve around security and manageability (Trend Micro Inc., 2012). Mobile platforms widely differ in regards to security and manageability. Generally, modern mobile platforms provide substantially better security as compared to conventional desktop operating systems when it comes to built-in security mechanisms, data protection and authentication, although they are more vulnerable to attacks as compared to desktop PCs. Application security, corporate email support, and device management are to a better degree sufficient although there can still be space for improvement in the future. In the future, the feature sets that IT researchers and managers need to give high consideration include security certifications, support for virtualization, and device firewall, which are largely still missing. According to Trend Micro Inc. (2012) Android has the least security and manageability among the top recognized platforms, while BlackBerry has the best. At the present, it is still clear that the mobile OS competition is very tough, and key players like Android and iOS seem to still dominate in the industry despite the influx of several other OS in the market. Blackberry has also retained a significant market share and it is hard to say whether other upcoming players like Web OS will take off, as HP has really put in a great effort. Most likely, the public will be looking at a market with around five major mobile OS platforms. With the presence of so many platforms, any business or organization that doesn’t have access to major budgets but requires so to reach across diverse audiences should adopt a suitable one. 4.0 Impact on Business and Government In the future, businesses and government organizations will use the mobile devices more than the fixed devices. It implies that the mobile platform will be used to deliver several other services and applications (Zhao et al., 2009). Some of the traditional functions in business and organizations that will be impacted with mobile technology changes include: i. Marketing and commerce Marketing and commerce will change to mobile marketing and mobile commerce. Increase in mobile marketing and mobile commerce are the impact that will be brought by mobile operating systems/platforms in business and government agencies. Mobile marketing entails all the activities necessary to communicate with the customer through the use of mobile devices in order to promote the selling of products and/or services, for example, through Apple’s iAd and the mobile couponing. The mobile OS and platforms have enabled the generation of huge mobile traffic data. With the huge number of Smartphone users, advertisements can be delivered to a wider base of customers. iAd allows the developers to embed the ads within the apps. This method is used to help developers to monetize free iPod, iPhone, and iPad applications. iAd advertisements is sort of variable from the normal web advertisement. ii. Security Stronger security is a mainstream requirement and business trend that can be supported in the mobile device technology. Customers expect that the information they share with agencies is kept safe and secured from inappropriate use) (Murmann & Rossnagel, 2004). iii. Change, change agent and implementation The government and its agencies can integrate the mobile operating systems platforms technologies as agents of change in the services employed by the government. The main impact is the bringing about of change to enhance global competitiveness and national responsibility (Murmann & Rossnagel, 2004). The UAE can enhance its competitiveness by adopting world class practices in all sectors involving eGovernance (Al-Khouri, 2011). A survey found that Smartphones make up 43.7 percent of mobile phones in the UAE, showing a strong take up of the mobile device technologies in the country (Al-Khouri, 2011). Blackeberry’s market is the highest considering that the country is a commercial hub for the region. This shows a positive acceptability of the mobile world technology and its changes and the challenge is now to use this technology for the better good of the country (Al-Khouri, 2011). 5.0 Recommendations The mobile OS companies should adopt flexible policies to enable ease of integrating future changes. For example, Android’s IT team should consider having Android to their set of flexible policies and probably restrict its use to the least sensitive mobile roles. Enhance coordination throughout the business and government organizations for better results. There is need for common standards that will allow exertion of same meaning to all business processes. Enhance security of operating systems and their platforms for better usage. Building technology for the future expects a thought beyond programmatic lines. Thus to keep up with the pace of change in technology, there is need to architect the systems securely for interoperability and openness from conception. The government can use modern tools and technologies to capture the digital opportunity and basically change how the organizations serve both its internal and external clients to serve them better (Al-Khouri, 2011). 6.0 Conclusion The business and leadership environment is changing with advancement of mobile device technologies. This report has looked at mobile operating systems platforms and how their presence has impacted the way of doing things in businesses and in the government. Recommendations for better adoption and utility of the technologies are given. References Al-Khouri, A. (2011). “An innovative approach for e-Government transformation.” International Journal of Managing Value and Supply Chains, 2(1), 23-43 Murmann, T. & Rossnagel, H. (2004). “How secure are current mobile operating systems?” 48- 59 Muttik, I. (2012). Securing mobile devices: Present and future. McAfee Labs Sugiharto, H. (2010). Current and future mobile platforms. Germany: Berlin Institute of Technology Trend Micro Inc. (2012). “Enterprise readiness of consumer mobile platforms”. White Paper, 1- 17 Zhao, W., Wui, H., Dai, W., & Li, X. (2009). “Integration middleware for the mobile supply chain management.” Proceedings of the Second Symposium International Computer Science and Computational Technology, 521-524 Read More