The eagerly awaited launch of Apple’s iPhone into the UK
has prompted a number of firms to launch business applications
targeted mainly at small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) but a
leading research firm is warning that the device is not yet
business-ready.
Mobile
synchronisation and device management company, Synchronica has
launched a new service that it says will enable iPhone users to
receive push email from Microsoft Exchange accounts, without
requiring additional software to be installed on the iPhone, or
behind the corporate firewall.
Users who log on
at www.synchronica.com and
register their iPhone with Synchronica’s Mobile Gateway will be
able to send and receive e-mail immediately says the company. After
a 60-day trial period, users will be migrated to a
commercially-supported service. The free trial for UK iPhone users
follows a similar trial that has operated in the US since August
where more than 10.000 US iPhone users signed up.
At the end of
October, Sybase announced that it will provide support for the
iPhone within its
Information Anywhere suite, claiming to enable IT organisations
to provide secure delivery of Lotus Domino and Microsoft Exchange
enterprise email to iPhone users. Sybase believes that its approach
to providing enterprise support for the iPhone reduces potential
security concerns while still providing a rich user experience
utilising the native iPhone mail application.
However despite
these moves, analyst firm Gartner is warning that the iPhone
currently lacks the capabilities of being business ready, in
particular in terms of security. Gartner says that Apple's
first-generation iPhone is not configured with typical enterprise
security and management practices in mind and that many
organisations will find security capabilities insufficient.
Specifically referring to the Sybase announcement, it says that
even though Sybase's plan to support wireless e-mail on the iPhone
will likely lead to a wave of similar announcements, the iPhone
still does not meet enterprise security policy requirements. It
added that end users supporting the iPhone may be lowering security
standards.
At time of launch,
the iPhone was not available with business-specific tariffs.