iPhones for Congress: the change we need?

Davey Winder
Friday, 24 October 2008 15:40

IT Industry - Market

When it comes to Washington politics, one party has ruled supreme in Congress for years: the BlackBerry party. Is that about to change as The House starts testing Apple iPhones for compatibility?

At the heart of the tech savvy Barack Obama campaign to become the 44th President of the United States of America has been a message of change. From 'Change we can believe in' through to 'The change we need.' Now it seems that the message has struck a chord in Congress, where technological change could be coming.

For the longest time the halls of power in Washington have echoed with the clickety click of people in suits tapping away at a BlackBerry. In fact, since the RIM CrackBerry was first made available to Congress in 2000 the smartphone has been the smart choice of the majority.

The totally bi-partisan BlackBerry has won a landslide vote in actual fact. It is reported that there are no less than 8200 of the devices in active use within The House.

Thanks in no small part to the terrorist attacks of 9/11 which prompted the House Administration Committee to purchase a BlackBerry for every member of Congress in order that they could keep in touch.

CrackBerry fever soon spread to include office workers and pretty much anyone who could get one, had one. But that could all be about to change, courtesy of the iPhone.

It is now being reported that the Chief Administrative Office is testing iPhones, following demands from members of Congress, in order to determine suitability within the House.

The decision whether to go for iPhones or not will coincide with the arrival of the 44th President, in January 2009. In fact, it could well mirror the new Presidential presence in terms of promise and delivery.

Just as both candidates are promising change, but most pundits agree that enacting real change in Washington will be a long process, so the demand for iPhones is unlikely to challenge the rule of BlackBerry on The Hill.

Mainly because, as I understand it, the iPhone will have to come out of the individual member's allowance rather than being provided for free. And when it comes to the choice between freebies and dipping into your own pocket, in politics that's one thing that does not change...