The New York-based company says the location management services can be interfaced with mobile position services on a carrier’s network. "The versatility [of the service] depends on the level of accuracy the cellular provider supports," said Amit Rahav, MessageVine’s international operations vice president.

MessageVine offers three different editions of MessageVine IM Server each designed to meet the business needs of wireless carriers and telecoms, Internet portals and ISPs, and application service providers.

Features of MessageVine IM Solution

• Operates at the server level and is platform agnostic.
• Integrates with a variety of mobile positioning systems and protocols.
• Designed for GPRS networks, to take advantage of the always-on capabilities, but can be integrated with existing 2G networks.
• Enables delivery of wireless IM with location management as well as the following:

• Desktop instant messaging
• LDAP and customer database registration integration
• Interoperability with IM protocols including MSN Messenger and ICQ
• i-mode and WAP platform compatibility and one-way and two-way SMS support.

Even though the wireless messaging market is crowded with the likes of NomadIQ, AOL Instant Messenger, AIM Mobile service, ICQ, and MSN, MessageVine is betting on the "vast customization and scalability options" of its service to give it an edge over its competitors, said Mr. Rahav in the Internet News.