By Karen E. Peterson

March 21, 2001 – Telespree made news last week for its "disposable" mobile phone. What didn't make news – it wasn't as sexy – was word that Telespree inked a deal with Compaq to deliver its service via Compaq's NonStopHimalaya platform.

Why is that important? Quick answer: enterprise. For both companies, this could be a smart move into what will drive wireless into America's Fortune 500 – partnerships that augment servers and solutions that already have market and mind share.

Compaq inherited the Himalaya when it absorbed venerable mainframe-maker Tandem. Since then, Compaq has positioned the line as e-commerce solutions for telecommunications networks and business-critical, high-volume transaction processing.

Telespree handset

Telespree's product – a prepaid, wireless service delivery platform that includes one-button, voice-activated handsets – is aimed at service providers. The concept, said Telespree, is low cost, easy-to-use and ready-to-use "over-the-counter wireless communications."

By linking with Compaq – which claims to have "customer relationships" with more than 50 percent of the carriers worldwide – Telespree gains entry into the very sector it's targeting.

Conversely, Compaq gains a foothold in the device market to underscore not only its own wireless products but to augment CEO Michael Capellas' prediction that "the market for simpler Internet access devices is going to be a freight train."

Compaq, added Capellas two years ago, will be one of the premiere passengers on that train: "We're not going to be last; we're going to be first."

Also to watch: RangeStar Wireless, of Aptos, Calif., which provided custom-made, embedded antennas for the Telespree devices.

RangeStar's antennas are available to mobile handset, Bluetooth, cordless telephone, wireless LAN, wireless Internet and GPS manufacturers.