Fixed-Mobile Hybrid Mashups: Applying the REST Principles to Mobile-Specific Resources

Abstract

Mashups have already for years been quite popular and common in the Internet. However, data sources used for creating mashups rarely include anything from the vast potential of the mobile domain and mashups either used from mobile devices or utilizing mobile-specific assets are largely absent. Many enablers, such as smartphones equipped with GPS receivers, already exist for such mashups; operators also possess a large array of useful information on their network server. The lack of mashups in this potentially fruitful area stems partly from the difficulties in accessing such data. This paper describers the application of Representational State Transfer (REST) principles to opening up new and legacy mobile-specific assets in order to enable the creation of compelling “fixed-mobile hybrid” mashups – mashups that utilize information both from existing “fixed” Internet sources as well as mobile-specific sources exposed via an open, simple API. We also present alternative architectures for the deployment of such a system and provide key lessons learned when implementing a subset of the designed API and proof-of-concept mashups.