Network operators and hand-held device manufacturers direly needed an Industry-based certification for development of their application software solutions, which will function as the Operating System in their devices.  The long-felt need was fulfilled in 2004 by Symbian Limited, UK with their launch of “Symbian Signed”, the Industry-endorsed application signing program. This program tests applications against industry-agreed criteria which was what the network operators and mobile device manufacturers were craving for.

With the advent of Symbian Signed the developer opportunities through wider market exposure, cheaper and easier application signing process emanated. This program is so designed as to ensure a thriving, open market for trusted mobile applications, by way of providing a single, low cost and unified certification program.

Also the program delivers developer authentication and anti-tamper security for Symbian OS applications. Once introduced, the developers of mobile device applications cramped up for the certification process and more than 300 Symbian native C++ and Visual Basic applications along with their associated content had achieved Symbian Signed Status within no time since the launch was made.

Today the growth of the program is phenomenal and almost every hand held devices like PDA, Smart Phone, Pocket PC etc. are being used for multi-various utilities with Symbian Signed applications – Calculators; Developer Tools; Emulators; File Management; Keyboard; Miscelleneous Utilities; Patches & Updates; Security; Skins; Synchronization; Text Editors; Time Management like Clocks and Calendars and a lot more.
Prior to the launching of Symbian Signed the network operators, application publishers and mobile devices makers relied upon individual certification schemes, which were expensive and complex. Because Symbian Signed provided a single signing scheme for all these individual schemes, handset manufacturers such as Nokia, Sendo and Sony Ericsson migrated their own signing program to Symbian Signed and from 2005 onwards all their devices based on UIQ and Series 60 and thereafter accept only high quality and tested Symbian Signed applications.

In addition Symbian Signed supports a distribution channel for Symbian OS application developers as it provides a powerful route to market with the main application vendors and distributors. The rights to use the “For Symbian OS” logo are awarded to these developers for augmenting their business volumes.
Result is millions of hand-held devices including PDA are being marketed with this authentic, high quality and best-performance Symbian applications incorporated in them with more and more technology upgrades and fine tuning coming on the way!