As part of its strategy to expand its online offerings, Psion Plc, the UK handheld computer group, yesterday announced a free internet service, which the company says will be available by the end of the month. The service, Planet Psion, was launched in conjunction with the internet service provider (ISP) LineOne, a joint venture between United News & Media and British Telecommunications plc. It will be available from 13 September, Psion said.
As part of the deal, Psion handheld computers equipped with browsers will gain access to LineOne’s internet content through web pages especially formatted for viewing on the small screens. As well as specific content, users will also be able to gain access to the world wide web, said a spokesperson for Psion.
Although Planet Psion was first introduced back in June, the spokesperson said Psion hadn’t been promoting the offering because of its limited content – users had a choice of BBC’s online services or the Meterology Office for weather updates. The deal with LineOne will enable Psion to significantly expand those services, to include such things as the latest news, travel, business, sports, and entertainment information as well as enabling users to store all their diary, calendar and office data on-line, the spokesperson added.
But encouraging users to move their personal data to the web seems an illogical step for Psion, given the whole remit of a handheld computer is to let users keep their personal data on a device that fits conveniently into their back pockets. If Psion encourages its users to store their calenders and schedules on the net, why bother with a handheld? But the spokesperson said more and more businesses were looking for these types of collaborative scheduling services, where employees can share their diaries and contact details, and so on, over the web. We’ve already seen it with the popularity of Netscape’s calendering services, and similar ones from the likes of Yahoo and others, he said. It’s all about flexibility of access to data. It’s not limiting our offerings, or encouraging our users away from their handhelds, it’s adding an extra layer.
Yesterday’s move is part of new Psion chief executive, David Levin’s stated plans to shift the company’s reliance on revenues away from its hardware and software products, towards internet-based services. The strategy is an attempt to boost sales in other sectors amid increasing competition from Microsoft’s Windows CE based products and 3Com’s Palm devices in Psion’s traditional handheld marketplace.
In September 1998, as part of that plan, the company sold its proprietary operating environment, EPOC, to Symbian, a joint venture (in which Psion has a controlling stake) between Psion, Nokia, Motorolla and Ericsson. The aim is to make EPOC the standard operating system in the next generation of mobile phones and handheld PCs. More details about the service are expected to be annouced within the next few days, Psion said.
