16 September 2009

Students to get University direct to their mobile

A unique new mobile application that will enable students to receive University information direct to their mobile phone is set to be launched in December by the University of Sheffield.

The pioneering new campusM™ application will allow students to access comprehensive information about upcoming events, view campus maps and have their own up-to-date timetable, with just one click of a button.

The application, developed by oMbiel, will also feature a friend locator to help them meet up with other students, and users will also be able to browse their library records and look up faculty, staff members or student contacts from the University directory. Students will also be able to use the application to receive the latest news and important alerts to help them get the most out of their University life.

The University of Sheffield will be the first of a group of universities in the UK to roll out campusM™ to its students, who are able to download the application for free from the Apple iPhone application store.

For the launch, UoScampusM™ was available on the iPhone and iPod touch, but by the first quarter of 2010, the application will be compatible with other mobile phones, including those from BlackBerry®, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, Sanyo and Sony Ericsson. CiCS will be piloting these phones with the expectation of releasing the application during the 2nd quarter of 2010

Dr Christine Sexton, Director of the University of Sheffield´s Corporate Information and Computing Services, said: "With over 24,000 students and almost 6,000 staff, students are living increasingly mobile lives, needing information and services on the move at anytime. We had to find a way to make our services more accessible to meet the need of our students. UoS campusM™ will ultimately save students time, keep them better informed and make communicating with staff and other students a lot easier.

"The UoS campusM™ application offers an integrated suite of services that our students want, enabling them to stay informed with the ease and convenience that mobility brings. It gives students all the information they need in one central place, which is accessible anytime and anywhere and which will enhance the overall student experience and allow them to concentrate more of their time on their studies."

Hugh Griffiths, CEO of oMbiel said: "Our selection by the University of Sheffield is validation that oMbiel is providing a leading industry application to make student services available at the tap of a finger, regardless of their location. It is a major milestone in our development of mobile applications for the Higher Education sector and it will significantly contribute to the rapid expansion of the technology in the UK."

Notes for Editors: For additional information, visit: www.sheffield.ac.uk/cics/campusm

oMbiel delivers innovative mobile solutions to empower the mobile user. It develops bespoke mobile applications across diverse sectors for a broad range of mobile devices including the iPhone, iPod touch as well as many other devices including those from BlackBerry, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Palm, Samsung, Sanyo and Sony Ericsson. oMbiel also offers enterprise mobile integration services for capturing data from back-end sources allowing functionality to be incorporated quickly and easily into applications. oMbiel was established in 2008 and is headquartered in Birmingham, UK. For more information, visit www.ombiel.co.uk.

For further information please contact: Shemina Davis, Media Relations Officer, on 0114 2225339 or email shemina.davis@sheffield.ac.uk

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