Wireless Application Protocol

 Definition

The Wireless Application Protocol Forum is an industry group dedicated to the goal of enabling sophisticated telephony and information services on handheld wireless devices. These devices include mobile telephones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other wireless terminals. Recognizing the value and utility of the World Wide Web architecture, the WAP forum has chosen to align its technology closely with the Internet and the Web. The WAP specification extends and leverages existing technologies, such as IP, HTTP, XML, SSL, URLs, scripting and other content formats. Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and Unwired Planet founded the WAP Forum in June, 1997. Since then, it has experienced impressive membership growth with members joining from the ranks of the world's premiere wireless service providers, handset manufacturers, infrastructure providers, and software developers. WAP Forum membership is open to all industry participants.

  WAP Forum has the following goals

To bring Internet content and advanced data services to Wireless phones and other wireless terminals. To create a global wireless protocol specification that works across all wireless network technologies.

To enable the creation of content and applications that scale across a wide range of wireless bearer networks and device types. To embrace and extend existing standards and technology wherever possible and appropriate.

It is also very important for the WAP Forum's specification in such a way that they complement existing standards. For example, the WAPV1.0 specification is designed to sit on top of existing bearer channel standards so that any bearer standard can be used with the WAP protocols to implement complete product solutions. 

WAP Protocol Stack

Any network is organized as a series of layers or levels where each level performs a specific function. The set of rules that governs the communication between the peer entities within a layer are called protocols. The layers and protocols together forms the Protocol Stack. The request from the mobile device is sent as a URL through the operator's network to the WAP gateway, which is the interface between the operator's network and the Internet.