Will mHealth get beyond the press release?

In one of the main press releases from the sponsor, the GSM Association, was word of an alliance with a group called the Continua Health Alliance for something called mHealth.

Continua did not have the release on its Web site when I checked this morning, but the group has high hopes for what it calls "personal telehealth," noting that 300 million people are obese, over 600 million have chronic conditions, and 600 million are over 60.

This, they believe, means a big market for systems that connect people to data, and connect data to people. Consumer applications might include a way for grown children to monitor their aging parents' condition. Business applications might let health care groups extend their work into the field.

These are early days, of course. Right now Continua is featuring the CPX186, a cable that can connect scales, and blood pressure monitors from A&D Medical, which operates under the LifeSource brand, to the evolving Continua Standard.

What GSMA and Continua say they are bringing to the mHealth party is interoperability. Once there are standards for mHealth applications, both groups think the field will take off.