Microsoft Takes RIM Shot
Earlier this week, Microsoft announced software that lets you
use
Windows to manage mobile phones as if they were desktops. System Center
Mobile Device Manager 2008 lets you deploy applications to phones, control security
settings and carefully manage these notoriously tricky mobile devices. Microsoft's
CEO Steve Ballmer made the announcement at the CTIA wireless exposition going
on this week in San Francisco.
This is a direct shot at the market currently dominated by Research In Motion
(RIM), makers of the insanely popular BlackBerry device and software. Part of
Microsoft's goal for this fiscal year is to sell more than 20 million licenses
to its Windows Mobile operating system. There will be new phones that support
SCMD Manager 2008 coming out early next year from Palm, Motorola and others.
For its part, RIM has been incessantly boosting what the BlackBerry can do
beyond simple voice and text messaging and e-mail. The mobile landscape is shaping
up as the next big battleground.
Do you use Windows Mobile? Do you use a BlackBerry? How will you reconcile
using both once it becomes more feasible? What's your mobile strategy overall?
Catch up with me and let me know at [email protected].
Posted by Lafe Low on October 24, 2007