The initiative, led by Nokia and supported by all leading computer companies, including Sun, Microsoft, Oracle, IBM and HP, entails the consolidation of multiple industry consortia under a single banner. The Open Mobile Architecture initiative and WAP Forum have joined to form the foundation for this new organisation and the Location Interoperability Forum (LIF), MMS Interoperability Group (MMS-IOP), SyncML Initiative Ltd. and Wireless Village initiative, have also committed to a pooling of resources.

The formation of the group comes amid a growing realisation within the industry that an ever-increasing number of competing special interest groups were contributing to a fragmentation of standards for the delivery of services to consumer handhelds. Alliance members say they will work together to collect market requirements and define specifications designed to remove barriers to interoperability and accelerate the development and adoption of of new communication and entertainment services and applications.

Mark Winther, group vice president, worldwide telecommunications, IDC, says the venture represents a welcome new attitude in the mobile industry. "This recognizes the vital role of the eco-system in realizing the potential of mobile services," he says. "An individual technology, product, vendor or operator will have little success without engaging all aspects of the mobile value chain -- devices, networks, applications, and content."

Financial sector members of the new alliance include, Banksys, Charles Schwab, Credit Suisse, MasterCard, Nordea, Visa and Zurich Cantonal Bank.