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Social mobile gets its own “roadmap”

by kiwanja

After three workshops on three continents, conversations and meetings with countless NGOs, academics, researchers and technologists, and many hours of conference calls, W3C this week released their “Mobile Web for Social Development Roadmap”, a comprehensive document which sits at the heart of the wider work of the Mobile Web for Development Interest Group (MW4D).
According to the Roadmap document, its purpose is to help:
“… understand the current challenges of deploying development-oriented services on mobile phones, evaluate existing technologies, and identify the most promising directions to lower the barriers of developing, deploying and accessing services on mobile phones and thereby creating an enabling environment for more social-oriented services to appear”
The Roadmap is split into two distinct sections. The first covers challenges and issues in developing mobile tools for social development, and the second looks specifically at technology options. The primary audience are individuals, organisations and entrepreneurs interested in social mobile; the mobile industry itself; academics; international organisations and, finally, policy makers and regulatory bodies.
The Roadmap is very much a work-in-progress, and the MW4D Interest Group welcomes comments, recommendations and suggestions to help shape it as the work moves forward.

After three workshops on three continents, conversations and meetings with countless NGOs, academics, researchers and technologists, and many hours of conference calls, W3C this week released their “Mobile Web for Social Development Roadmap”, a comprehensive document which sits at the heart of the wider work of the Mobile Web for Development Interest Group (MW4D).

According to the Roadmap document, its purpose is to help:

“… understand the current challenges of deploying development-oriented services on mobile phones, evaluate existing technologies, and identify the most promising directions to lower the barriers of developing, deploying and accessing services on mobile phones and thereby creating an enabling environment for more social-oriented services to appear”

The Roadmap is split into two distinct sections. The first covers challenges and issues in developing mobile tools for social development, and the second looks specifically at technology options. The primary audience are individuals, organisations and entrepreneurs interested in social mobile; the mobile industry itself; academics; international organisations and, finally, policy makers and regulatory bodies.

Question time in Sao Paulo (2008). Other meetings were held in Bangalore (India) in 2006, and Maputo (Mozambique) in 2009. Photo: Ken Banks, kiwanja.net

The Roadmap is very much a work-in-progress, and the MW4D Interest Group welcomes comments, recommendations and suggestions to help shape it as the work moves forward.

23 comments

1 Ken Banks { 12.03.09 at 3:54 pm }

W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

2 Michael Downey { 12.03.09 at 4:01 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF #mHealth

3 Michael Downey { 12.03.09 at 4:01 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF #mHealth

4 Yaw Anokwa { 12.03.09 at 4:01 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

5 Tweets that mention Social mobile gets its own “roadmap” | Build it Kenny, and they will come... -- Topsy.com { 12.03.09 at 4:02 pm }

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Ken Banks, Michael Downey. Michael Downey said: RT @kiwanja: W3C releases Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF #mHealth [...]

6 Theresa Ann Conner { 12.03.09 at 4:09 pm }

going to read it! thx Ken!

7 Jessica { 12.03.09 at 4:09 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

8 Paul B. { 12.03.09 at 4:11 pm }

Looks like a really useful and interesting document!! Thanks for highlighting the release, and happy to comment once I’ve had a chance to read it all through. :)

9 Kara Pecknold { 12.03.09 at 4:16 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

10 richardscullin { 12.03.09 at 4:18 pm }

a notable start involving many people, countries, time zones RT @kiwanja: W3C's Mobile Web 4 Social Development roadmap. http://is.gd/5bdPF

11 Twitted by richardscullin { 12.03.09 at 4:21 pm }

[...] This post was Twitted by richardscullin [...]

12 changefeed { 12.03.09 at 5:06 pm }

->@kiwanja: Social mobile gets its own “roadmap” http://bit.ly/7NdJfB

13 ksharpey { 12.03.09 at 5:09 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

14 uberVU - social comments { 12.03.09 at 5:30 pm }

Social comments and analytics for this post…

This post was mentioned on Twitter by yanokwa: RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it’s Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you’re into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF...

15 andyjb { 12.03.09 at 5:33 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

16 rob allen { 12.03.09 at 5:56 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

17 Edward Rees { 12.03.09 at 5:56 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

18 Alison Jones { 12.03.09 at 5:57 pm }

Good post, looks very interesting. Love the table!

19 paulscott56 { 12.03.09 at 5:58 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

20 Dale Zak { 12.03.09 at 6:31 pm }

RT @kiwanja W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

21 Alan M Jackson { 12.03.09 at 9:15 pm }

RT @kiwanja: W3C releases it's Mobile Web for Social Development roadmap. Well worth a read if you're into social mobile http://is.gd/5bdPF

22 kiwanja { 12.04.09 at 2:36 am }

Thanks for the comments and tweets. If you’d like to know more about how you can help drive the process, drop me a link (via the Contact form on the website here, or on Twitter – @kiwanja). Thanks!

23 Mike Yoshioka { 12.07.09 at 5:10 pm }

Very interesting read! Thanks for sharing!

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