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Padcom announces agreement with NEC

Jul 1, 2005 11:22 AM, By Donny Jackson

Mobile-connectivity-solutions vendor Padcom this week announced an alliance with NEC Solutions America, which plans to sell Padcom’s TotalRoam software solution to entities buying NEC’s Sentrus system, a comprehensive public-safety information system.

Partnering with Padcom was a logical decision as NEC pursues opportunities to sell Sentrus to customers increasingly focused on utilizing applications in a mobile environment, said Steve Gousie, manager of business development and marketing of public-safety solution for NEC Solutions America.

“What’s key in this market is migrating what’s traditionally been done in police and fire stations to the field,” Gousie said. “We’ve found that Padcom is the best solution for letting people move seamlessly from one network to another … so [first responders] can concentrate on doing what they do best, instead of having to be radio guys.”

When used in conjunction with Padcom’s TotalRoam software, public-safety personnel can access the Sentrus system via myriad wireless data networks--from CDPD to Wi-Fi to EV-DO and others--without having to restart the session when switching between networks. NEC officials were attracted by the reliability and scalability of TotalRoam, Gousie said.

“The biggest thing was not just that [Padcom] could move us from one network to another but that it could do it securely,” he said.

Previously marketed as the Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS), NEC’s Sentrus solution this week received the “Best in Show” award at the Corporate and Channel Computing (C3) Expo in New York City.

Padcom CEO Scott Stone said the NEC arrangement is the latest step in the company’s effort to market its product through indirect sales channels. Padcom previously announced similar deals with Dell and Nextel Communications, allowing those companies to include TotalRoam as part of their own solution packages.

“Typically, we provide our product to [partners] at a discount from the list price,” Stone said. “We feel like we’ve got a great set of partners, and NEC is an excellent addition.”

Padcom expects to announce more partnerships in the coming months, Stone said.