Businesses will need to assess how they support the iPhone in
their enterprise IT strategy now that Apple has developed the
iPhone 3G as a mobile platform for business users.
Earlier this week, Apple chief executive office Steve Jobs said
the phone has already been
tested by large businesses through
Apple's iPhone beta programme.
The device provides functions required by enterprise IT such as
support for the Cisco VPN for securely connecting the device to the
corporate network Microsoft ActiveSync to share e-mail, calendar
and contacts between the iPhone and Microsoft's Exchange Server and
iPhone 2.0, a programming interface, which can be used to create
mobile enterprise applications.
"Thirty-five per cent of Fortune 500 companies have participated
in the iPhone beta programme," Jobs said. The list includes four of
the five big banks, five commercial banks, the top-five securities
firms, six of the top airlines and eight of 10 top pharmaceutical
companies.
IT departments face the challenge of potentially supporting four
mobile operating system platforms: Research in Motion's Blackberry
Enterprise Server, Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0, the Nokia/Symbian
platform and now iPhone 2.0.
IT directors will have to assess the security impact of putting
the iPhone on the corporate network, if Apple is successful at
making the iPhone an enterprise.
In spite of Apple's efforts to build in security into the
iPhone, Tony Cripps, senior analyst at Ovum, warned that businesses
should be wary of iTunes, an integral part of the iPhone 3G device.
The iTunes music store is used by Apple to upgrade software on the
iPhone, Cripps said. "IT directors will need to get assurances from
Apple that any security risk on iTunes cannot be passed onto the
corporate network."