WAP

Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a set of communication protocols designed to enable mobile devices to access information over cellular networks. Developed in the late 1990s by the WAP Forum, WAP targeted devices with limited processing power, small screens, and low bandwidth, providing a lightweight framework for mobile web access.

The WAP stack consists of multiple layers. At the top is the Wireless Application Environment (WAE), which defines content formats such as Wireless Markup Language (WML) and WMLScript. Below it, the Wireless Session Protocol (WSP) manages sessions, while transport and security are handled by the Wireless Transaction Protocol (WTP), Wireless Datagram Protocol (WDP), and Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS). A WAP gateway or proxy translates between WAP requests and the standard Internet (HTTP/HTML), enabling access to conventional websites from mobile devices.

WAP versions evolved from 1.0 to 2.0, with the latter moving toward XHTML and a more open web approach as networks and devices improved. Despite improvements, WAP faced criticism for limited user experience and performance on early devices, and it gradually declined with the rise of full-featured mobile browsers and modern smartphones.

Today, WAP’s legacy lies in its early standardization of mobile content delivery and its influence on the development of mobile web design and services. While largely superseded, it played a formative role in the transition from fixed mobile portals to scalable, browser-based mobile Internet access.