The iPhone may have outsold RIM’s Blackberry devices here in the U.S., but Google knows that getting their software in the hands of business execs still means building Blackberry apps. The company’s recent offering in this arena is a new, deployable package of Google Maps for Mobile which IT admins can distribute using Blackberry Enterprise Server.
Although an end user may not understand why their IT admin won’t let them use their iPhone at work, what they don’t understand are the complexities behind the need for standardization of equipment. Once an IT shop standardizes on one platform, like the Blackberry for example, making the decision to support other devices is not something made lightly. Standardization means less training is required for IT support personnel, fewer problems due to less variables in play, cost savings by buying in bulk (equipment and/or licenses), as well as numerous other advantages, too.
In addition to the benefits provided by standardization, IT departments also have to take into account the investment in their current infrastructure technology. To date, that investment often includes BES, or Blackberry Enterprise Server, which supports the needs of email-on-the-go for millions of corporate users.
Now, BES admins can deploy Google Maps for Mobile to those millions of users with ease, thanks to Google’s new packages designed specifically for this server technology.
IT admins can select one of the following methods to deploy the software:
- Download the ALX package for BlackBerry Enterprise Server to give employees Google Maps for mobile.
- Download the JAD/COD package if you would like to host the files internally and have your employees individually install Google Maps.
- If you use access control policies to restrict installation of applications on corporate BlackBerry phones, download the workaround ALX package for BlackBerry Enterprise Server versions prior to 4.1.5 MR1. (More information is available in our discussion group.)
ALX packages for Google Web Search and GOOG-411 are also available.
