Trivanti was set up in July last year to develop and market wireless internet data services for B2B and B2C communities. The closure will result in 16 redundancies and Psion will take a charge of up to £1m in the first half of 2001.
A statement from Psion said, "The mobile data market has not developed as quickly as anticipated, with delays to the implementation of GPRS and a subsequent reduction in investment in wireless content. In the context of this delay, the board of Trivanti has decided to close the company and to return the remaining cash to its shareholders."
United Business Media and Psion each owned 46% of Trivanti, and United was to provide content from Xilerate, its online division. Analysts expected the venture to make a £2m loss in 2001.
The news is the latest blow to the mobile internet sector, which has suffered from a series of setbacks including some disastrous launches of next-generation mobile data services.
The current Wap technology has proved a disappointment to consumers who are frustrated by the time they have to wait for downloads and connections. Service providers were counting on the new GPRS technology to solve these problems, but the rollout has been delayed.
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