context will be as influential to mobile consumer services and relationships as search engines are to the Web.

By 2015, context will be as influential to mobile consumer services and relationships as search engines are to the Web.

Market Implications:

Context-aware computing will have a transformation, disruptive effect on business—particularly for retailers, financial services, media, healthcare, and telecom firms

The most powerful position in the context business model will be the context provider. We expect firms like Google, Nokia, Apple, Microsoft, and communication service providers to lead the way in creating these services, platforms and business ecosystems.

Alliances will be key, since many organizations have part of the technical or commercial foundations for context, but no vendor as yet has them all.

— For example, an alliance between a network operator and a social network—where the former

could provide location and billing and the latter brings customers, developers and some software

tools—could yield a strong competitive position