Microsoft To Unveil Three New Mobile Services

By: Jennifer Hong
Staff Writer
Published: Jan 20, 2009

Microsoft is set to unveil three new mobile phone services at the Mobile World Congress trade show next month. The cell phone services are called SkyBox, SkyLine and SkyMarket which are likely to be named under Windows Live.

Microsoft Corp is set to unveil three new mobile phone services at the Mobile World Congress trade show next month. The cell phone services are called SkyBox, SkyLine and SkyMarket which are likely to be named under Windows Live. The software giant is also expected to unveil its new Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system.

The first service is codename SkyBox which lets users sync their mobile phones with the Web. The mobile phone service will offer automatic backup and restore and the ability to sync e-mail/SMS, contacts, and calendar items. The service is similar to Apple Inc's MobileMe.

SkyLine offers similar functionality to SkyBox but is targeted at small businesses. Mobile phone users will be able to set up their smartphones with Microsoft Exchange hosting under their own domain names. Employees who travel will be able to sync their mobile devices directly under their company domain name instead of using a third-party service.

The third mobile phone service is called SkyMarket which will offer a marketplace similar to Apple's AppStore and RIM's BlackBerry application center. SkyMarket will only be available on Windows Mobile devices.

Windows Mobile 6.5 is expected to release next month, although no date has been confirmed. Sources say that Microsoft will offer the mobile phone upgrade on its Web site during the Mobile World Congress trade show.