iPhone and Android in the Enterprise – a Shift in Enterprise Mobile Technology
Apple’s iPhone and Google Android based devices are fast emerging as the preferred smartphones for enterprise users, indicating a significant shift in the IT and mobile enterprise market.
The shift is being powered by the launch of Apple’s new iOS4 and Android 2.2 OS, which not only offer useful features for mainstream customers but also come with enterprise-class functionality such as unified email, VPN Support and advanced security features, apart from a massive tapestry of business centric applications.
According to data released by mobile device management software vendor Good Technologies, the adoption of iPhone and Android based smartphones in businesses is being spearheaded by employees that are purchasing the devices to use them at work. The company says that in the first half of 2010, 1500 enterprises have deployed its Good for Enterprise mobile management software on iOS and Android based smartphones. IT departments are increasingly being forced to offer device management and security services in order to support the smartphones which are being used at work.
Enterprises are quickly recognizing the shift and are planning to mobilize their operations in the coming months. A report released by Trust Digital, which was compiled after interviewing 150 CTOs and CIOs working in Fortune 500 companies, revealed that a significant number of companies were planning to integrate mobile devices, mostly Androids and iPhones, with their operations, within the next 6 to 12 months.
When it comes to mobile platform of choice, Research in Motion’s BlackBerry has been a favorite with mobile enterprise users until recently. But ever since users released the full enterprise capabilities offered by the Apple and Google platforms, experts are starting to observe a shift in the trend that does not favor RIM. The survey conducted by Trust Digital reckons that sometime next year, around one-third of IT executives will be seen managing mobile platforms other than RIM’s BlackBerry.
Now that a game changing shift in enterprise mobile technology is imminent, it remains to be seen which platform triumphs over the other. Enterprise users can go for iOS4 based Apple devices such as iPhone 4, iPad, iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch owing to the unified email functions, a massive app catalog and device management tools that come with it. Android 2.2 on the other hand, can still manage to give iOS4 a slip with its Wi-Fi tethering, diverse availability and open-source approach. It will be interesting to see what becomes the next mobile technology platform of choice in the enterprise.
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