early 1960's. The most dominant method used to broadcast messages throughout an
enterprise has been through the use of radio-paging systems. The first radio-paging
systems were "on-site" systems, developed initially in the 1950's for use in hospitals as
"doctor alert" systems. Competition and advancing technology in the mid 1980's brought
about the introduction of message paging, initially in the form of numeric paging, where a
number of digits could be displayed on a pager to signify a telephone number to be called
or to be used as coded messages. This was followed by alphanumeric paging, allowing
comprehensive written information to be sent. The system allowed callers to send
messages via a bureau (for alphanumeric messages) or via push button telephones (for
numeric messages only).
By 2002, most of the U.S. service providers offering advanced paging capabilities had
entered bankruptcy or merged as the industry's traditional one-way customer base
increasingly switched to digital wireless phones. To compound those difficulties, the main
suppliers of paging technology, Motorola and Glenayre Technologies, both exited the
business. Where does that leave the enterprise? Some have switched to vertical market
suppliers of paging services while the majority have opted for cellular telephones and or
integrated PDA devices such as the Blackberry by Research in Motion.
The cellular handset is suited for one-to-one conversation but is not currently considered
a one-to-many means of communication. The integrated PDA is fine for brief email
messaging but is not suited for mass communication throughout the enterprise as it is
limited to only those that have such a device.
ASI's EMAlert for Enterprise takes advantage of all of the enterprise's available
communications channels and offers a new solution to address the enterprise as a whole.
