IBM Provides New Mobile Software
IBM Provides New Mobile Software by Robbie Pleasant
IBM has recently announced the release of its Connections social software for mobile devices, made to help organizations take advantage of social networking over a wide range of tablets, phones, and other mobile devices.
Customers can download the software from all major app stores, immediately gaining access to blogs, employee data, wikis, and status updates. They can also share files, photos, and videos, while the "partial wipe" capability for Apple iOS devices lets administrators remove confidential company data when necessary, while leaving personal data untouched.
As part of the Connection social software, IBM is releasing a variety of mobile apps. Among these are: New social networking app, a free IBM Connections app with functionality for Google Android, Apple iOS, and BlackBerry devices; Partial wipe for Apple iOS devices; click-to-call from Android OS device calendar, which lets IBM email users call people in their calendars; Unified Communications for Android devices; online meeting support for BlackBerry; and Cloud-based meeting support for Android.
"From the announcement it is clear that IBM is trying to stitch together the elements of their mobility plan," says UCStrategies UC Expert Michael Finneran. "They are ‘touching all the bases’ recognizing the importance of mobility and social networking in UC&C, the range of mobile device O/S’s they will need to support, and the challenges presented by the BYOD ('Bring Your Own Device') environment."
Michael adds, "IBM still has a lot of work to do in standardizing their capabilities across the three major mobile O/S environments (i.e. Android, iOS, and BlackBerry), and that list may have to grow if Microsoft’s Phone 7 begins to catch on. That standardization will be a challenge given the different capabilities inherent in each O/S and the range of APIs that are open to developers, but it is a challenge they will have to come to grips with if they intend to have a meaningful mobility offering."
For more information, visit www.ibm.com.