Mobile tools firm Momote last week announced its Momote MX platform, which lets companies build applications that will run on virtually any mobile device. Using its system, application development times can be reduced to just six weeks, according to Momote.

Momote MX, available immediately, consists of developer tools, a server component and a client-side runtime module, the Momote MX Engine. Applications are coded completely in XML and interpreted by the MX engine for whichever mobile platform they are running on.

"This means you can develop an application just once, and deploy it to any mobile device you choose," said Momote's managing director, Graham Whistance.

Alternative developer tools such as Java or Microsoft's .Net Compact Framework use more complex programming languages, and do not have the cross-platform support of Momote MX, according to Whistance. "With either of those, you're making fundamental choices regarding which client devices you will be able to use in the future. We're offering a future-proof, low-risk approach to going mobile," he said.

Momote currently offers MX Engines to support Pocket PC, Palm OS and Symbian clients, plus another engine that sits atop Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME) on mobile phones and BlackBerry devices. Support does not currently extend to Windows laptops, although it would be a relatively easy task to create a Windows MX Engine, Whistance said.

Applications can be deployed to users over-the-air, by sending a link via an SMS text message to the handset, or by synchronising the mobile device with a desktop PC. The firm said that its standards-based architecture avoids the need for a middleware platform to link the mobile clients to the back-end infrastructure. "All communication is via HTTP, so it is straightforward to interface if a customer is already using web applications," said Whistance.

Steven Smith, managing director of mobile developer Professional IT, said that Momote's systems enable his firm to build cross-platform applications without adapting the code to any particular device. "Momote lets us run on any device that's Java-enabled," said Smith, whose firm sells logistics software to the courier and distribution market. "We have a long development cycle and don't want to put resources into supporting any one mobile platform, as the underlying technology constantly changes," he added.

The Momote MX platform is priced at £20,000 plus a 20 percent annual maintenance fee. Client licences cost £8 per device per month for up to 100 devices, falling to £4 each above 500 devices.