Sun Microsystems Inc. appears to have pulled out ahead, if only for the moment, of rival Qualcomm in the race for wireless platform supremacy.

The Palo Alto, California-based company announced that it has entered into collaboration and a licensing deal with ARM Holdings of the U.K. that may offer it the missing piece of the Java puzzle — enhanced Java execution in the memory challenged and power starved wireless environment.

By sharing their Java expertise, these two dominant players appear to have their sights on setting a de facto standard for embedded computing platforms in wireless devices. Under the terms of a licensing agreement, ARM will incorporate certified Java technology into its future enhancements of its Jazelle technology-based microprocessors.

"The ARM Jazelle technology provides a highly optimized implementation of the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), speeding up execution times, and providing consumers with an enriched user experience on their mobile devices," said Rich Green, a vice president, Java Software. "Together with our proven Java™ 2 Platform, Micro Edition (J2ME™) technology, our collaboration on new Java technology will provide OEMs with the best possible dedicated JVM for running the Java Platform in the wireless world."

The Sun/ARM alliance has some industry observers talking about Java's current execution times multiplying by three or five or, possibly, 10 times. If these predictions ring true, Java may leave BREW behind in a cloud of dust, on its way to platform dominance.

For more information: http://www.sun.com/smi/Press/sunflash/2001-06/sunflash.20010625.7.html