In talking with uLocate Communication’s Dan Gilmartin a couple of weeks back, we were aware of a partnership with Sprint somewhere down the line. Now the details are official and when Sprint rolls out its WiMAX mobile broadband network, dubbed XOHM, in Baltimore next month, uLocate’s WHERE platform and friend-finding application Buddy Beacon will form the backbone of what Sprint calls a “largely location-centric experience”.
With the new XOHM service, Sprint aims to jump on the growing popularity of location-based services and provide a “geobrowsing effect” that incorporates location context into the mobile browsing experience. Not only will XOHM apply to cellular devices, but any mobile device connected to the WiMAX network, including automotive PND’s, laptops, portable media players, and even digital cameras.
Perhaps the most impressive part of XOHM is its openness. Sprint will make the XOHM API’s available to 3rd parties so they can create their own location apps on the XOHM network, improving its usability.
While uLocate is Sprint’s primary partner in the XOHM rollout, they aren’t the only name of note. Yelp, Eventful, Topix, Navteq, AccuWeather, Google, Openwave Systems, and Autodesk will add their own location context to the new service. Look for XOHM to rollout in both Chicago and Washington, DC in the fourth quarter.
via arstechnica
