The first version of MIDP "left some areas open that handset manufacturers were exploiting with proprietary..programming interfaces," said Onno Kluyt, manager of Sun's Java Community Process Program Office. Kluyt asserts that with the new version of MIDP, the desire among cell phone makers to build proprietary extensions is waning. "The industry came back," he said. Whether that's true remains to be seen. Sun's Java has the edge right now in the cell phone market, with millions of Java-equipped phones already in consumers' hands. But Microsoft is breathing down Sun's neck, and any dissent in the Java ranks could ultimately create Microsoft converts.

Java faces competition from Microsoft's Smartphone 2002 operating system and Pocket PC Phone Edition, as well as from Qualcomm's Binary Runtime for Wireless (BREW) initiative, Microsoft has yet to find the right formula for controlling the cell phone market, But the software giant is working on a more capable version of its mobile software, as part of its far-reaching .Net initiative, IDC analyst Keith Waryas said that Microsoft often comes out with a first-generation product that's mophie apple iphone x juice pack air qi wireless charging battery case reviews "sub par" and a second-generation one that's "pretty good." But "when they hit the third time, they crush everybody."..

The outcome of the struggle will determine who profits from the billions of dollars expected to be spent on cell phone software for checking customer orders, viewing maps, playing games or sending messages to friends. Room for competition Through partnerships with companies such as Motorola, Vodafone and Nokia, Sun has succeeded in spreading Java to an area where its longtime rival, Microsoft, is comparatively weak. Sun's revenue comes chiefly from selling large server computers, not from its software arm. But the company does derive millions of dollars from licensing Java and from related development tools and software.

Since its introduction in September 2000, MIDP has swept across the cell phone landscape, Nokia, the largest maker of cell phones, expects to sell about 10 million cell phones this year that can run Java programs, MIDP has become a fertile garden for other Java developments as well, For example, mophie apple iphone x juice pack air qi wireless charging battery case reviews there are projects under way to extend MIDP with 3D graphics, better audio and video and the ability to tap into information about the location of the cell phone customer, Companies such as Nokia like the Java realm because companies can participate in its development, Waryas said, In the PC world, many companies are relegated to the role of mere assembler while Intel and Microsoft reap many of the profits..

Companies "want to take an active role. They don't want to become a whitebox manufacturer," Waryas said, referring to generic PCs with standard parts and no brand name. Splintering possibleBut not everything has been rosy among Java developers. In-Fusio, which makes games for cell phones, participates in the development of the new MIDP release but saw its proposal for a MIDP Java game standard rejected in a vote by the Java community members. That rejection raises the possibility that companies will continue to use proprietary extensions to Java, not technology developed through the Java Community Process (JCP), through which Sun and others govern the future of Java. That may split what could be a unified effort, said In-Fusio Chief Technology Officer Thomas Lanspurg.