US-BASED networking giant Cisco Systems Inc has announced an initiative to bring mobile computing to a higher level for mobile corporate users.

Called CIMO (Cisco Internet Mobile Office) programme, the company will start with Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China and Australia initially in Asia, since these are the countries that corporate executives travel to and from most in the region. The solution is expected to debut here free for a limited period of time through access points provided by Bluengine Holdings later this month.

The initiative is aimed at business professionals who need to have high-speed Net access when they travel. To support Cimo's architecture, Cisco plans tieups with system integrators and technology, application and service providers to make the whole "ecosystem" viable.

"Eventually, Cimo will also have consolidated billing across service providers," said Freddy Cheung, Cisco System's director of commercial line of business for the Asia-Pacific. "We will seek partners to build a successful infrastructure for Cimo."

Some current business partners include remote access network providers iPass; broadband provider Davnet Singapore; and StarHub Internet. Bluengine Holdings, which has a franchise of 32 cybercafes in Singapore, will be one of Cisco's first location partners and is planning 49 Cimo access points by the end of April.

"Initial calculations have estimated 10,000 to 15,000 access points to be set up to cover the whole footprint of Singapore," Bill Chang, managing director for Cisco Singapore, said. "We will populate the CBD area and expand from there. I think setting up 2,000 to 3,000 points in one year is possible."

That would mean end-users would have broadband access points at airports, hotels, restaurants, and other public locations. "Being in touch is no longer enough," said Mr Cheung, "It is necessarily to remain integrated within corporate workflows and processes while you are on the move. For example, you need to download your monthly or quarterly performance product or sales reports to make decisions."

Mr Cheung added: "We call this Instant Internet. We don't need to know where you are. You don't need to know the technology behind the capability. You just plug your PC into the connection and log on to your corporate network and do your work - all of it in a secure enviroment."