iPhone 2.0 update aimed at enterprise

Stephen Withers
Friday, 07 March 2008 02:03

Your IT - Mobility

A major update to the iPhone's system software brings a raft of new features, many of which are targeted at enterprise users.

Now available in beta form to "selected developers and enterprise customers", the update is scheduled for release in June. While it will be free for iPhone users, iPod touch owners will be charged a fee.

Heading the list of business-related changes is the inclusion of Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync. This allows the iPhone to be used with Exchange Server 2003 or 2007 for push email, contacts, calendars, address lists, remote wipe and other functions. These features integrate with existing iPhone applications.

"We started talking with Apple about licensing Exchange ActiveSync before the launch of the iPhone last year," said Terry Myerson, Microsoft's corporate vice president for Exchange. "In fact, I met with Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller almost daily for a period of two weeks ironing out the details of the agreement. The result is a true collaboration between Microsoft and Apple."

Other enterprise features include Cisco IPsec VPN software to reduce the risk of eavesdropping when connecting remotely to an intranet, support for WPA2 Enterprise with 802.1x authentication for more secure Wi-Fi connections, a configuration utility to simplify the configuration of multiple iPhones, and the ability to display PowerPoint files attached to emails.

Apple also announced the iPhone Software Development Kit and the App Store which will sell third-party iPhone applications.