Mobile data and Unified Communications are fast becoming mainstream, and the national comms event of the year - Comms Solutions 08, Wembley Stadium April 16-17th - will showcase the inaugural Mobility Zone where voice and data resellers will gain an opportunity to profit from the burgeoning mobile data market, estimated by analyst group Ovum to be worth £13.9 billion.

Unified Communications is seen as the next major growth area and a strong rally in the mobile data market reflects growing confidence about the outlook for mobility and Unified Communications as a significant channel opportunity in the UK.

Shomik Banerjee, Industry Analyst of Enterprise Communications at leading research house Frost & Sullivan, commented: "In my discussions with enterprises, I hear time and again of their need to empower their mobile workers with appropriate communication tools. Investment in mobility is a key priority for enterprise CIOs. The Mobility Zone at Comms Solutions 08 is a great platform for the industry to showcase its innovation and capabilities."

Stuart Baikie, MD of Cheltenham-based Total Telecommunications (TTL), is forecasting £11m turnover in 2008 based largely on mobile data sales. He commented: "If a customer already uses a mobile phone, it stands to reason that there is a strong chance they are also a contender for a converged mobile voice and data device. In a survey we conducted asking which tools end users needed to access while away from the office, 81% said they needed just as much access to email as to a phone. Add to this that 31% also needed to access business applications and you start to get some idea of the potential."

Mobile technology is increasingly becoming a ‘must have' for businesses. Workers are demanding more flexible ways of working and businesses are looking at ways to address this need. With demand for mobility solutions set to continue unabated, voice and data resellers will be able to broaden their knowledge at the Comms Solutions 08 Mobility Zone, as well as network and discover the wide variety of products and services demanded by end users. These can range from add-ons such as smartphones, laptops, sector specific applications, through to mobile access to existing CRM packages and bespoke applications.

Significant end user benefits are fuelling a strong movement towards mobile data. Chief among the advantages are collaborative communications; presence; turning downtime into productive time; improved quality of work; an enhanced customer experience due to swifter response times; work-life balance; immediate access to requests, information, back office systems or orders etc; and new ways to communicate with third parties.

To find out more about Comms Solutions 08 please visit http://www.comms-solutions.com