What Exactly Is WAP?

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WAP is simply a protocol that's used to access information and services through wireless devices, such as mobile phones and PDAs.

WAP is defined, coordinated, and developed by the WAP Forum.WAP Forum members have a vested interest in extending the kind of information and services that you have become used to accessing over the Internet to users of mobile devices. As previously mentioned, Phone.com, Ericsson, Nokia, and Motorola were the first members of the WAP Forum. Now the forum's members include most of the leading corporations in the industry, both in the IT and communications sectors. This includes all the major handset manufacturers, network operators, and software companies.

The objective of the WAP Forum was to define a standard application framework that is universal in nature. This allows for the interoperability of all the components required for a mobile device to access mobile network applications.

From the start, the WAP Forum aimed to define a standard that leverages existing Internet technologies wherever possible, and that also interoperates with third-party Internet technologies.

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