Cisco will update its wireless, client-to-network communications infrastructure CCX (Cisco Compatible Extensions) -- typically software burned into devices at the chipset level -- to support these new VOIP technologies.

Following the Cisco upgrade, dual-mode handsets from Nokia that include the latest version of CCX are expected in the fourth quarter.

The next generation of Intel Centrino chips will also include support for the latest CCX extensions.

A Research in Motion (RIM) spokesman, Mike McAndrews, vice president of product management, said that RIM currently supports CCX technology but that the company does not comment on future products.

The technology enables client-initiated communication with an AP (access point). This is a reversal of traditional WLAN technology in which the APs constantly poll the client for availability, often reducing battery life to unacceptable levels.