Today in 2001: GhanaWeb launches Ghana's first WAP service

On October 28, 2001, Ghanaweb launched its functional Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) service, becoming the first Ghanaian site to have a WAP service that enabled mobile phone users, to view Internet pages, using text only, and very simple black and white pictures.

Ghanaweb in 2001 set the standard for other internet portals. There has been impressive progress with our service delivery with us becoming the most-read news portal in Ghana.

Read the full story originally published on October 28, 2001, on Ghanaweb

Ghanaweb.com, Ghanaian Internet Portal Giant launched its Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) service simultaneously in Accra, Amsterdam and Helsinki on Thursday. Ghanaweb thus scores another first as the first Ghanaian site with a functional WAP service.

WAP is a method of letting a wireless device, usually a mobile phone, view Internet pages, using text only, and very simple black and white pictures. Currently WAP is being used by both GSM, CDMA and TDMA cellular phone networks.

In a move that raises the bar for Ghanaian portal rivals and provides users access to the web while on the move, the service currently boasts of a news, sports, foreign exchange and stock quotes page.

CEO Francis Akoto -- who has described GhanawebWAP as a step in the wireless direction - was the front for the new system in Helsinki.

Leading the razzmatazz in Amsterdam was vice-CEO Robert Bellaart, where representatives of GhanawebWAP's strategic partners were present. Meanwhile smaller launches will take place later this month. Ghanaweb hopes the effort will aid Ghanaians to stay in touch with the news wherever they are. FAQ

What is WAP?

WAP, is short for Wireless Application Protocol? So what does that mean! Well, basically it is a method of letting a wireless device, usually a mobile phone, to view Internet pages, using text only, and very simple black and white pictures. Naturally, it isn't quite as simple as that, the web site has to be specially designed for the WAP phone, and the pages have to be fairly small as the data speed on mobile phones is a lot slower than a domestic modem. Also, all the phones will have different shape and size screens, so pages will look different depending on the phone you are using. What types of networks support WAP?

One of the great things about WAP is that it is very easy to use it on almost any wireless format. Currently WAP is being used by both GSM, CDMA and TDMA cellular phone networks. Most people talk about WAP as a GSM standard, but that is only due to the high usage of WAP by the GSM networks. Naturally, the mobile phone network has to enable WAP on their service, but a lot of them are doing so. WAP can also be ported to other wireless formats, notably DECT, the format for European domestic cordless phones, which is being used in a lot of offices, and also the new TETRA format, which is a digital version of the radios carried around by security staff and haulage personnel. TETRA is another European standard, but it has been adopted or approved for use in a lot of other parts of the world, including the USA. For more information on the GhanawebWAP contact Francis Akoto