RIM cuddles up to iPhone, iPad IT admins, announces BlackBerry Mobile Fusion

RIM today announced BlackBerry Mobile Fusion, something they're touting as "The Next Generation Enterprise Mobility Solution for BlackBerry, Android and iOS Smartphones and Tablets". Really. Says so right here:

We are pleased to introduce BlackBerry Mobile Fusion - RIM's next generation enterprise mobility solution - to make it easier for our business and government customers to manage the diversity of devices in their operations today," said Alan Panezic, Vice President, Enterprise Product Management and Marketing at Research In Motion. "BlackBerry Mobile Fusion brings together our industry-leading BlackBerry Enterprise Server technology for BlackBerry devices with mobile device management capabilities for iOS and Android devices, all managed from one web-based console. It provides the necessary management capabilities to allow IT departments to confidently oversee the use of both company-owned and employee-owned mobile devices within their organizations.

While RIM is still struggling to get PlayBook to 2.0 and BBX superphones into the hungry hands of the CrackBerry Nation, this could be an interesting way to hedge against Enterprise BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) trends that skew users away from traditional BlackBerry's and towards iPhones.

Still, consumers would probably still prefer BBM for iOS...

Source: CrackBerry.com

Rene Ritchie
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Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.