Smartphones-for-Soldiers Campaign Hits Wall as Army Experiences Growing Pains

摘要

"A smartphone for every soldier" may be a clever slogan. But trying to turn it into reality is becoming an uphill battle for the U.S. Army. It's not that the Army doesn't have the money. With a $10 billion a year information-technology budget, it buys loads of gizmos. But smartphones, although inexpensive compared to most devices soldiers use in combat, present unique challenges. The biggest one is that they give soldiers considerably more freedom to receive and send information than the Army is comfortable with. Senior commanders fret about issues such as how to ensure no sensitive battlefield intelligence ends up on Facebook. Other vexing questions: How will phone apps be managed? What happens when phones are lost or stolen? And will these fragile objects even survive the rigors of combat? Another headache is the communications infrastructure. Cellular towers don't exist everywhere the U.S. military goes. The Army will have to bring its own, which creates a new set of technology hurdles and additional expense.