Google is making a stronger push for the corporate market by
integrating Google Apps with Research In Motion's BlackBerry
Enterprise Server.
Originally announced in May, the integration enables Google Apps
Premier users to access their Google e-mail, contacts, and
calendars on BlackBerry handsets as if they were built-in functions
of the device. Additionally, IT departments will still be able to
monitor and manage access to corporate networks with familiar
tools.
The integration means corporate Gmail users can have e-mails
pushed to their handsets within a minute, as well as
synchronization of deleted e-mails, labels, and folders. Mobile
workers can also have their Gmail contacts synched with their
BlackBerry smartphones over the air.
At the moment, there's only one-way synchronization between Google
Calendar and the smartphones. The search giant said it is working
on two-way calendar synching for scheduling, accepting, and
declining meetings. The Google Apps Connector for BES can be
downloaded free on Google's Web site.
This is just the latest move by the search giant to woo
enterprise users away from Microsoft, as it is in the midst of a
large marketing campaign to get companies to switch to its
corporate apps. Getting BlackBerry support is a key factor in
reaching this audience, as RIM has a dominant grip on the
enterprise mobility market.
Google is also expected to go head-on with RIM for mobile
professionals in the near-future, as the company will bake in
enterprise-friendly features in its Android operating system in
future updates. The company may have a hard time besting the
BlackBerry maker though, as a report from J. Gold Associates
estimates RIM will capture nearly 60% of the enterprise field in
2011, while Android will nab 4.8% in three years.