What Is BREW?
BREW stands for Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless. At a basic level, the BREW platform functions as an interface or a layer of abstraction to the embedded chip's operating system on a handset. Think of it as being similar to the Win32 API for Microsoft Windows in the PC environment. The BREW platform is a set of binary libraries compiled and linked for native execution and optimized to allow applications to take advantage of wireless services and resources. It controls the flow of events to and from the applications and accordingly starts, stops, suspends, or resumes applications in response to appropriate events. The BREW execution environment discovers applications and any associated extensions at runtime.
The BREW platform is part of a complete, end-to-end solution for wireless applications development, device configuration, application distribution, and billing and payment. The BREW solution includes the following elements:
BREW application platform and porting tools for device manufacturers
BREW Software Development Kit (SDK) for application developers
BREW Distribution System (BDS) that is managed and controlled by network operatorsenabling them to easily get applications from developers to market and to coordinate the billing-and-payment process