Office Mobility Blog

And Microsoft Publishes DataViz Case Study

Apple’s recent announcement that they’ve licensed Microsoft’s Exchange ActiveSync protocol for the iPhone has brought Exchange ActiveSync to the forefront of the mobile email discussion again. Many industry insiders such as Changewave’s Michael Shulman (who was recently interviewed on Fox Business with our CEO Dick Fontana) feel that this is going to turn the US enterprise smartphone battle in the into a two man race. In their discussion about the iPhone SDK announcement Shulman shared the following comments:

“The big news is push email, which is the heart of what a BlackBerry is. [Apple is] taking dead aim at the BlackBerry user and the corporate market.” ... “This sets up a world…where all other players are irrelevant. It’s the iPhone against the BlackBerry.”

While we may never know the exact details of how this licensing agreement between Microsoft and Apple came to be, the Exchange Team at Microsoft did shed a little light on the agreement and features in a recent post on the Exchange Team Blog.

As one of the few companies (and the first software vendor) to license the ActiveSync protocol, DataViz has some experience in this arena. In fact, Microsoft recently added a DataViz case study to their website which chronicles a bit of the process leading up to the licensing agreement. The case study also discusses what DataViz has been able to do as a result of the agreement, namely the creation of RoadSync: an ActiveSync client now available for 6 mobile platforms and well over 100 different mobile devices.

So, in the course of the coming months, Apple will be patching a corporate ‘hole’ in the iPhone by adding enterprise email, and RIM will be patching a corporate ‘hole’ in the BlackBerry by adding attachment editing via Documents To Go. Should be an interesting race, but I wouldn’t count the other players in the smartphone market out yet. We’ll have to wait and see if Windows Mobile, Palm, or any others make their own new play at the corporate smartphone market.

Microsoft - Case Study: DataViz

YouTube - DataViz Channel

Posted by Jason Coup at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Will Apple open the door?

Earlier today CEO of DataViz, Inc., Dick Fontana, appeared on Fox Business Network to share his thoughts about the recently announced iPhone software development kit (SDK) and developing applications (such as the popular Microsoft Office suite, Documents To Go) for this platform.

With many other mobile device platforms, such as Palm and Windows Mobile, a software company like DataViz is free to develop at will as the software can be marketed through a variety of channels. Based on yesterday's announcement from Apple, it seems things may be a bit different for the iPhone:

"The fact that there's one path bringing software to the device means that we have to go to the keepers of that path..."

While some may consider this a negative, DataViz has a long relationship with Apple which gives Dick reason to be optimistic about the opportunities for DataViz with the iPhone:

"We were one of the first developers for the Macintosh in 1984 and they [Apple] have always proven to be good business partners... We have every reason to believe that the path will be open for us."

You can see all of Dick's comments at the DataViz Channel on YouTube.

Posted by Jason Coup at 01:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Friday March 7th at 10:45AM

Later this morning Dick Fontana (CEO, DataViz, Inc.) will be doing a live interview on the Fox Business Network. Topics may include the recent advancements to Documents To Go such as the revolutionary InTact Technology and discussion of DataViz future plans. On the heels of Apple's iPhone SDK news yesterday, the 'will you develop Documents To Go for the iPhone' question is bound to come up.

You can see this interview at 10:45am EST on channel 106 if you're a Comcast subscriber and channel 359 on DirecTV. For other providers, check your local listings.

Check back later for a post-interview recap.

Posted by Jason Coup at 09:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

And 6.5% of worldwide smart device market.

The fourth quarter of 2007 definitely proved fruitful for Apple in the smartphone market. Apple Insider (via Canalys) reports that the iPhone reached #2 in US market share with 28%. RIM continued leading the way with 41% and Palm was a distant third with 9%.

"When you consider that it launched part way through the year, with limited operator and country coverage, and essentially just one product, Apple has shown very clearly that it can make a difference and has sent a wakeup call to the market leaders," - Pete Cunningham, senior analyst, Canalys.

With a new 16GB iPhone now available and third party apps on their way soon, it certainly seems like the sky is the limit for Apple in the smartphone space.

Will those third party apps include Documents To Go? Still hard to say, but if you want it, let us know!

Posted by Jason Coup at 02:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

What does this mean for DataViz?

iPhone users, potential users, and admirers will surely be happy to know that Apple took a big step toward creating a development community for the iPhone this week by announcing a Software Development Kit (SDK) for the iPhone. From the words of Mr. Jobs himself:

We are excited about creating a vibrant third party developer community around the iPhone and enabling hundreds of new applications for our users. With our revolutionary multi-touch interface, powerful hardware and advanced software architecture, we believe we have created the best mobile platform ever for developers.

Apple’s original stance on application development for the iPhone came in the form of a suggestion: create web-based applications that can be accessed through the iPhone’s Safari web browser. This was disappointing news to developers of mobile applications who are used to having much more access. Palm, for example, has had a large developer community for years. One could certainly argue that the level of growth they achieved would not have been possible without third party software development.

In yesterday’s press release, Jobs said the SDK will not be available until February of 2008 because they want to open up the platform while keeping the device safe from viruses.

This is no easy task. …As our phones become more powerful, these malicious programs will become more dangerous. And since the iPhone is the most advanced phone ever, it will be a highly visible target. … We think a few months of patience now will be rewarded by many years of great third party applications running on safe and reliable iPhones.

So what does this mean for DataViz, you ask? Hard to say at this point (after all, the SDK was only announced yesterday and won’t be available for a few months), but imagine Exchange ActiveSync access to your email, editing Office files, and having all of your PINs and passwords encrypted and easily accessed on your new iPhone!

We’ve been getting more and more requests each day asking us - begging, in some cases - to bring our applications to the iPhone, specifically Documents To Go, RoadSync, and Passwords Plus. Thanks to this announcement, we’ll be able to give this serious consideration. You can bet we’ll have our hands on this SDK as soon as possible. I can’t guarantee anything, but please, if you are interested in having DataViz software on your iPhone, let us know!

Related Articles:
[7/12/2007] iPhone: IMAP vs. ActiveSync
[1/18/2007] iPhone: Third Party Software?

Posted by Jason Coup at 01:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (2)

And where does RoadSync fit in?

Exchange connectivity for the iPhone has been a hot topic lately. There’s been months of discussion about iPhone support (or lack thereof) for Exchange ActiveSync (EAS). There’s even been speculation that Apple will license the EAS protocol from Microsoft. As of this writing, the iPhone does not include EAS support. It does, however, include the ability to sync with Exchange via Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP).

So, what’s the difference between IMAP and EAS, you ask?

Continue reading "iPhone: IMAP vs. ActiveSync" »

Posted by Jason Coup at 09:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)

One of the hottest topics in the wireless industry right now is Apple’s iPhone. And, since this blog is dedicated to Microsoft Office mobility, we have to ask; where are the document editing and exchange email capabilities on this device?

We’re not the only ones asking that question. In fact, there has been a lot of talk about not only that, but third party software in general for the iPhone. It’s unlikely that Apple will release an SDK for this phone which means that, just like the iPod, there won’t be a developer community creating applications for the iPhone.

“You don’t want your phone to be an open platform…You need it to work when you need it to work. Cingular doesn’t want to see their West Coast network go down because some application messed up.” – Steve Jobs, CEO, Apple (via Newsweek).

There are many opinions about why Apple likes to keep their devices ‘closed’. Read on to check out a few or give your own opinion.

Continue reading "iPhone: Third Party Software?" »

Posted by Jason Coup at 08:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (2)