13/07/2009

Mobile phone applications can be freed from limitations placed on them by a phone's specifications by cloud computing, a technology researcher has claimed.

According to ABI Research, the introduction of a cloud computing network means applications are no longer restricted by memory, handset functions and the operating system.

Dan Shey, mobile services practice director at ABI Research, said: 'By moving some of the intelligence of the handset and its functions into the cloud and using an application that is available for all handsets - browsers - the application development process is simplified creating [a] greater incentive to build applications for a larger addressable market.'

He added that a mobile application can become more powerful if it can extract location and presence information while part of the cloud network.

A study from Juniper Research showed that global direct and indirect revenues from mobile applications are expected to exceed $25 billion (£16.7 billion) by 2014.

Growth in the sector is being propelled by the launch of a number of stores targeting mass-market and high-end handsets.