March toward m-commerce moves forward

SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS, France -- The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) reports that is being accelerated with the establishment of a new Specialist Task Force (STF). The STF will support the work of ETSI Project M-Commerce (EP M-Comm) in the development of mobile signatures, which will be used to authenticate the identity of a person doing business on a mobile telephone in the same way that a written signature guarantees the identity of a person signing a written contract.

ETSI expects mobile commerce is to be one of the key drivers for the growth of the global information society, and experts anticipate mobile to play an important role in the development of the consumer market for e-commerce, a fact supported by the imminent launching of a number of m-signature systems by different operators. 

Among numerous potential mobile commerce applications, ETSI says that initial industries using m-commerce will be banking, financial services, security services, shopping, advertising, entertainment, customer care, and information provision. However, to make best use of the opportunities offered by new electronic means of communication, and to enable e-commerce, m-commerce, and more.

Security required

Generally, for e-transactions, a secure environment is required, with the establishment of a system of electronic signatures. The development and use of signature and authentication products and services is still in its introductory stage. ETSI's primary goal of this STF is to define a precise architecture, protocols between service provider and signature gateway, and general security requirements to achieve interoperability between entities involved in the mobile signature architecture.

Timely standardization of m-signatures is essential. This STF will accelerate the establishment of standards, which will then be able to influence early developments of these systems and avoid a proliferation of de facto standards, with potential problems of interoperability, which could impede the roll out of m-signature systems and slow down the use of electronic signatures by consumers. Without a standardized system, the use of mobiles for signature, particularly for sensitive applications like payment or ticketing, could be severely limited.

The STF will produce Technical Reports and Technical Specifications on mobile-signature web service definition, protocols, security requirements and roaming. Its activities will include four tasks:

▪ Definition of the m-signature web service, including a review of existing systems and an analysis of business needs, and then definition of a mobile-signature service architecture and message flow, establishing a generic model for interoperability.

▪ Technical specification of an m-signature web service, defining a common protocol between signature proxy and service provider.

▪ Definition of a common set of security requirements, including a minimum set of security requirements for mobile signature systems, to establish standardized trust levels. This will help interoperability agreements to be set up between different m-signature operators.

▪ Precise definition of the means to allow roaming, related data and protocols.

Experts are currently being recruited to the STF. Work is expected to start in September 2002 and to be completed by April 2003, but the first deliverables are scheduled for publication by the end of 2002.

Work will be conducted in close co-operation with ETSI's existing initiatives on signature issues, and with the European Electronic Signature Standardization Initiative (EESSI). Liaison with associations involved in the promotion of m-signature will help to obtain market feedback to achieve consensus.

European experts

ETSI's STFs bring together relevant experts from all over Europe to work on particular projects, speeding up the production of urgent deliverables. This STF is being funded under the eEurope Initiative, which aims to modernize the European economy and bring the benefits of new technology to everyone in Europe.

ETSI (the European Telecommunications Standards Institute) is a non-profit-making, independent organization whose mission is to produce the telecommunications standards that will be used for decades to come throughout Europe and beyond.

Based in Sophia Antipolis (France), ETSI unites 912 members from 54 countries inside and outside Europe, and represents manufacturers, network operators, administrations, service providers, research bodies and users.

The Institute's work program is determined by its members, who are also responsible for approving its deliverables. As a result, ETSI's activities are maintained in close alignment with the market needs expressed by its members. ETSI plays a major role in developing a wide range of standards and other technical documentation as Europe's contribution to world-wide standardization in telecommunications, broadcasting and information technology. ETSI's prime objective is to support global harmonization by providing a forum in which all the key players can contribute actively. ETSI is officially recognized by the European Commission and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

The European Commission's eEurope Initiative (eEurope 2002 -- An Information Society For All) was launched in 1999 to ensure that the whole of Europe reaps the benefits of the information society. It is a key element in the strategy for modernizing the European economy and aims to secure equal access by all of Europe's citizens, to promote computer literacy and, crucially, to create a partnership environment between the users and providers of systems, based on trust and enterprise. Its ultimate objective is to bring everyone in Europe, every citizen, every school and every company, online as quickly as possible.