Just 10 years ago, while many in the Silicon Valley were focused on personal computers mounted on desks, the new leader of Sybase had ideas about mobile technology in people's pockets.

When he first arrived in 1998, John Chen, chief executive of the Dublin-based company, had a hunch that as technology as a whole evolved, it would be the mobile sector that would represent the brightest future for Sybase. Others had their doubts.

Today, the company's $90 million in revenue from the mobility business in the second quarter says Chen's hunch was right on target, according to numbers released by the company Wednesday.

"People thought I was out of my mind when I first talked about mobility," Chen said. "I'm just glad we were persistent enough to stick it out for so long, because now we are forming a real market and movement in this area."

For the millions of people that send messages on their mobile devices everyday, most have no idea that the company that makes it possible sits within eyeshot of Oracle's Pleasanton campus.

"We are one of the best-kept secrets," Chen said. "Most people don't realize that actually an East Bay company is doing all of this."

Sybase now ranks as the largest non-telecom processor of messaging volume and the fifth largest among all network operators, the company said. Only China Mobile, Philippines Smart, Verizon and AT&T rank higher.

For 2008, the company expects to exceed 100 billion

If somebody is sending a message using a Verizon phone to another person that uses Cingular, without a company like Sybase, communication between the two service providers isn't possible. Sybase serves as the go-between when text messages are sent from one device to another.

Not only does Sybase aid in basic person-to-person text messages, but it has invested in another area referred to as enterprise mobility. This is where companies can use Sybase to get information to massive number of people instantly. Usually a data base is involved.

For example, if a company suddenly raises the price of a product, the sales force in the field can be notified in real time of the change so they can utilize the information when dealing with a customer.

A company like Delta Airlines, for instance, uses Sybase technology to automate its ground staff personnel to avoid airline delays.

Year-over-year, the mobile segment of Sybase is up 41 percent. Of the $90 million in the second quarter this year, $44.1 million was enterprise mobility and $46.2 million was text messaging. This accounted for about 31 percent of the company's $282.7 million revenue for the quarter.

"I think Sybase has definitely put all the pieces of the puzzle in the mobility sector together brilliantly and have executed the plan flawlessly," said Trip Chowdhry, analyst with Global Equities Research. "The world is becoming what John envisioned 10 years back."

The primary reason others didn't really understand the future of this sector is that they didn't fully grasp the possibilities, Chowdhry said.

"People at that time didn't have cellphones, so when people thought of mobile, they just thought that meant voice," Chowdhry said. "They didn't think of the possibilities of texting."

On Thursday, shares of Sybase rose 6 percent, or $2.10 to $34.50.

Staff writer David Morrill can be reached at 925-977-8534 or dmorrill@bayareanewsgroup.com.