Microsoft, Carriers Take on RIM
Research In Motion Ltd. for several years has had the corporate mobile e-mail market virtually all to itself. But the honeymoon is about to end as wireless carriers prepare to ink new deals with RIM competitors and Microsoft Corp. readies its next mobile operating system with push e-mail capabilities.Push e-mail provider Visto Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., this month will team with Nextel Communications Inc. to offer corporations a behind-the-firewall push e-mail access service for devices that compete with RIM’s BlackBerry, according to sources familiar with the company’s plans.
This comes on the heels of two other carrier partnerships that Visto announced this month with Vodafone Group plc., based in Newbury, England, and Rogers Communications Inc., in Toronto.
Most major U.S. wireless carriers offer RIM’s BlackBerry devices and e-mail service, and the carriers pay service and support fees to RIM. Third-party platforms, such as Visto’s, allow carriers to grab a bigger piece of the profit and support a wider choice of devices.” …
As I’ve blogged earlier, the momentum for competitive offerings is building gradualy. The eWeek article just sums themup again.
