Choices for Enterprise Customers Grow with Combination
SingTel, Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) and Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq:RIMM) (TSX:RIM) today announced the first availability of BlackBerry Connect™ for the Palm Treo™ 650 smartphone. With BlackBerry Connect, SingTel customers now have a wider choice of devices that support the robust and secure BlackBerry services and a wider choice of wireless email solutions that support the feature-rich Treo 650.
Vicki Brady, SingTel’s vice president of Consumer Marketing, said, “SingTel is proud to be the first operator in the world to bring the Palm Treo 650 smartphone with BlackBerry Connect to its customers.
“As mobile email has become an integral part of the business world today, we believe that the compact and feature-rich Treo 650 with BlackBerry Connect will appeal to many of our corporate customers. With SingTel’s unparalleled local mobile and international roaming coverage, they can access email on their handsets while on the go,” she added.
BlackBerry Connect for the Treo 650 smartphone enables users to benefit from many popular features of the BlackBerry “push”-based architecture via BlackBerry Enterprise Server™. For corporate customers, BlackBerry Enterprise Server software tightly integrates with Microsoft Exchange and IBM Lotus Domino™ and works with existing enterprise systems to enable secure, push-based wireless access to email and other corporate data.
BlackBerry Connect for the Treo 650 smartphone supports the following features:
- “Push” Corporate Email delivers messages automatically — and wirelessly — to the Treo 650 smartphone’s VersaMail inbox. Changes to the inbox, including read/unread status and deletion, are automatically synchronized between the user’s PC and the Treo 650.
- Wireless Calendar Synchronization keeps the Treo 650 smartphone’s built-in Calendar up to date remotely, allowing users to receive, accept or decline meeting requests on the go.
- Attachment Viewing lets users view Excel, Word, PowerPoint and PDF documents while on the road.(1)
- Remote Address Lookup (RAL) allows users to search their corporate directory wirelessly for email addresses without the need to download every name to the Treo 650.
- Extends the benefits of BlackBerry Enterprise Server to the Treo 650, including centralized device management; IT policies, such as over-the-air device disablement and password device lock; and Triple DES encryption, supporting end-to-end security.
“Companies in our region that have deployed BlackBerry Enterprise Server or are planning to do so now have strong reasons to consider the Treo 650, already one of the most compelling mobile-computing devices available today for enterprise users,” said Paul Blinkhorn, vice president for Palm Asia Pacific. “Today’s launch underscores Palm’s commitment to providing a broad range of world-class, enterprise-strength mobile-computing solutions, and offers Treo 650 customers greater choice and flexibility to fulfill their mobile email needs.”
“Millions of mobile professionals around the world have recognized the unique security, manageability, efficiency and reliability of the BlackBerry architecture,” said Norm Lo, vice president for Asia Pacific at RIM. “The Treo 650 with BlackBerry Connect delivers the power of the BlackBerry architecture with the familiar VersaMail client software that Palm users enjoy today, expanding the overall market opportunity for SingTel, Palm and RIM.”
The award-winning Palm Treo 650 smartphone makes it easier than ever for mobile professionals to stay connected. The Treo 650 combines a compact, full-featured mobile phone with email, an organizer, messaging and web access, allowing users to organize and simplify their business and personal lives all in one place.(2)
The Treo 650 has won acclaim for its intuitive user interface, award-winning form factor, and the availability of more than 29,000 third-party Palm OS applications and enterprise solutions. With third-party software applications available in finance, insurance, real estate, healthcare, education, sales force automation and IT management, users have the ability to mobilize enterprise data now, and the opportunity to leverage a vast community of developers to expand custom enterprise solutions.
The BlackBerry Connect functionality is available today for existing and new SingTel Treo 650 customers through SingTel business representatives. More information is available at: http://www.palm.com/us/enterprise/products/blackberry_connect.html.
About Research In Motion (RIM)
Research In Motion is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, phone, SMS messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications. RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity to data. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies are used by thousands of organizations around the world and include the BlackBerry wireless platform, the RIM Wireless Handheld™ product line, software development tools, radio-modems and software/hardware licensing agreements. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq:RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:RIM). For more information, visit http://www.rim.com or http://www.BlackBerry.com.
About SingTel
SingTel is Asia’s leading communications group with operations and investments around the world. Serving both the corporate and consumer markets, it is committed to bringing the best of global communications to customers in the Asia Pacific and beyond.
With significant operations in Singapore and Australia (through wholly-owned subsidiary SingTel Optus), the Group provides a comprehensive portfolio of services that include voice and data services over fixed, wireless and Internet platforms.
To serve the needs of multi-national corporations, SingTel has a network of 37 offices in 19 countries and territories throughout Asia Pacific, Europe and the United States. These offices enable SingTel to deliver reliable and quality network solutions to its customers, either on its own or jointly with local partners.
The Group also has major investments in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand. Together with its regional partners, SingTel is Asia’s largest multi-market mobile operator, serving 78 million customers in seven markets.
SingTel employs more than 19,000 people worldwide and had a turnover of S$12.62 billion (US$7.65 billion) and net profit after tax of S$3.27 billion (US$1.98 billion) for the year ended 31 March 2005. More information can be found @ http://www.singtel.com and http://www.optus.com.au.
About Palm, Inc.
Palm, Inc., a leader in mobile computing, strives to put the power of computing in people’s hands so they can access and share their most important information. The company’s products for consumers, mobile professionals and businesses include Palm Treo™ smartphones, Palm handheld computers, and Palm LifeDrive™ mobile managers, as well as software, services and accessories.
Palm products are sold through Internet, retail, reseller and wireless operator channels throughout the world, and at Palm Retail Stores and Palm online stores (http://www.palm.com/store).
More information about Palm, Inc. is available at http://www.palm.com.
(1) Attachments that are sent via email can be opened by using the BlackBerry Attachment Viewing Service or via native file viewers on the Treo 650 smartphone. Please refer to the BlackBerry Connect for Treo 650 smartphone User Guide for supported files and size limitations.
(2) Within wireless service coverage area only. Availability and coverage depends upon carrier and the geographic scope of international roaming agreements. Email, messaging and web access requires data services from a mobile service provider at an additional cost.
Palm, Palm OS, Treo, LifeDrive and VersaMail are among the trademarks or registered trademarks owned by or licensed to Palm, Inc. All other brand and product names are or may be trademarks of, and are used to identify products or services of, their respective owners.
The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited. RIM, Research In Motion and BlackBerry are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be pending or registered in other countries. All other brands, product names, company names, trademarks and service marks are the properties of their respective owners. RIM assumes no liability and makes no representation, warranty or guarantee in relation to third party products and services.
