Red Bend Software, which specialises in Mobile Software Management and Firmware Over-the-Air (FOTA) updating solutions for mobile phones, has announced that Telit Wireless Solutions SpA., which provides cellular m2m (machine-to-machine) technology, has licensed its vCurrent Mobile client software for use in its m2m product portfolio. The non-exclusive agreement represents a significant new market opportunity for Red Bend within the growing m2m sector, which is expected to be worth $285 billion and reach 500 million modules deployed worldwide by 2010, according to market research firm, IDATE.
The introduction of FOTA upgrade capability significantly increases value to our customers by reducing on-site visits and keeping recalls of remote applications to a minimum says Telit President, Dominikus Hierl. With FOTA, only hardware-related failures, which happen less often, will need to be fixed manually in the field. This is an important development for the m2m market where product lifecycles span 5 to 10 years.”
The Telit Wireless Solutions and Red Bend agreement represents a new capability for m2m applications, including the elimination of manual field software updates, enabling cost-efficient remote application maintenance, and improving the reliability and lifespan of m2m modules. Red Bends FOTA solution provides a cost-effective, fast, secure and reliable method of wirelessly reflashing the firmware on mobile devices to ensure that software is up-to-date with the latest enhancements and features. In 2006, Red Bend Software was embedded in 58 mobile handset models used by 80 million consumers worldwide. By 2008, FOTA technology is expected to be available in 50% of all mobile devices, according to ARCchart, a UK-based research firm.
Teaming with Telit Wireless Solutions, a world leader in m2m technologies, opens tremendous growth opportunities for Red Bend in an important and fast-growing segment of the wireless market, says Red Bend CEO Yoram Salinger. The savings in cost and even human safety with FOTA capability in m2m devices is compelling. For instance, a utility provider will save an average of $50 to not have to roll a truck for an individual service call and instead, can provision mass software updates to any number of devices remotely.
The m2m market recognises the importance of over-the-air firmware update technology as a critical part of advanced module deployment. With m2m modules growing in complexity, both operators and manufacturers benefit from solutions that remotely perform software improvements over the air. M2m applications can be found in a range of industries and used in a number of ways, including:
Automotive Telematics and navigation / location-based systems
Fleet Management/Transportation Vehicle tracking for efficient dispatch of work orders
Utilities Automatic Meter Reading to remotely read and measure energy consumption in real time
Retail Point of sale, credit card systems and vending machines
Government/Military Asset tracking of people or cargo (including Homeland Security).
Red Bend in Astonishing Alliance. Read. 
