If you anticipate a high quantity of Web traffic from mobile devices -- and that's information you can glean from your 's traffic reports -- you may want to look more closely at a locally deployed solution using an API that takes advantage of a local device data file.

If a cloud-based solution makes more sense in your existing environment, a good starting point in the evaluation process is to see if a trial is available to test drive. Also reach out to IT professionals at other organizations who are using the solution you're considering to confirm that maintenance is not an issue, that the data is updated on a regular basis and that the solution supports the environments you use like ASP, JSP and PHP.

Like most other aspects of your business, accommodating the rise in mobility is a process that will continually unfold. Standardizing how you identify the devices people are using when they interact with your network is just the start. While it's an important step, it's one of many that will culminate, ultimately, with the delivery of content that's compelling, regardless of the device on which it's received and consumed.

Mohan is active in the ICANN community. He joined the ICANN Board of Directors in November 2008 as a non-voting liaison from the Security and Stability Advisory Committee. He is the author (with others) of the Redemption Grace Period (RGP) and the IDN implementation guidelines, now global industry standards. He led the GNSO IDN Working Group, is a co-founder (along with the UN and the Public Interest Registry) of the Arabic Script IDN Working Group. He is a founding member of the ICANN Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC), a Board advisory committee comprised of Internet pioneers and technical experts including operators of Internet root servers, registrars, and TLD registries.

Afilias is a global provider of Internet infrastructure services that connect people to their data. Afilias' reliable, secure, scalable, and globally available technology supports a wide range of applications including Internet domain registry services, mobile services and Managed DNS. (For more information, visit http://www.afilias.info.)