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By Jim Finkle and Scott Hillis
BOSTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Mike de la Cruz, a senior
vice president with German software giant SAP AG, shows off the
latest weapon of the corporate road warrior -- his iPhone.
A hit with consumers because it combines a phone, music
player and Web browser, analysts say Apple Inc's iPhone is
gaining ground as a business tool as well, and could one day
rival Research in Motion Ltd's popular Blackberry line.
Although sought out by high-end consumers, Apple products
have never been accepted widely by business, so major corporate
adoption of the iPhone would be a breakthrough.
"It's fun," de la Cruz said in Boston at an industry
conference earlier this week. "It's so popular."
Indeed, it is popular enough that software makers such as
SAP, Salesforce.com Inc and scores of smaller developers are
letting sales and finance teams work away from the office on
their iPhones.
On Monday, SAP broke with precedent by saying it would
introduce a version of its upcoming customer relationship
management software for the iPhone before launching versions
for mobile devices from RIM and Palm Inc.
The reason? SAP's own salespeople were clamouring for it,
saying the iPhone was easier to use, according to Bob Stutz,
SAP senior vice president in charge of developing customer
relationship management software.
"This isn't necessarily iPhone deployment by way of the IT
department, but it's by people who really want to use this
device and IT is responding in a really positive way," said
Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with market research firm
Jupiter Research.
But analysts said several things need to happen before the
iPhone becomes a serious challenger, the most crucial of which
is more support for corporate e-mail.
Blackberries became an indispensable part of the business
world for their ability to forward e-mail from a corporate
network straight to the phones.
The iPhone's e-mail service can be configured to work with
corporate systems, but it does not "push" the entire message to
the device. Contacts and calendars also cannot be updated over
the airwaves, but require the iPhone to be physically docked
with a computer.
Since many businesses use Microsoft Corp's Outlook software
for e-mail, contacts and scheduling, Apple would need to
license Microsoft technology that lets mobile phones work with
Exchange, the server software that underpins Outlook.
Apple need only look at its recent past to find a business
justification for working with its long-time rival.
"What really made the iPod take off was when they made it
compatible with Windows. So if they made the iPhone compatible
with Windows e-mail, meaning Outlook, that would really make
sales take off," said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American
Technology Research.
E-mail is not the only stumbling block to wider corporate
adoption of the iPhone.
Analysts said some potential business buyers are holding
out for a model that runs on newer cellular technology that
enables faster Web connections. AT&T Inc, the exclusive U.S.
carrier, said last week it expects that kind of iPhone in 2008.
Moreover, while surveys show more than 90 percent of iPhone
users are happy with the device, several executives have gone
on the record, including at the Reuters Media Summit in New
York last week, as saying it is too vexing to tap out long
e-mails on the touch screen.
After a launch late in June, Apple sold 1.12 million
iPhones in its fiscal fourth quarter ended in September. RIM
shipped more than 3 million Blackberries in its second fiscal
quarter ended September 1.
Most iPhone sales were to non-corporate users, but Apple
says the device is great for business.
"We've said many times that we're providing a solution in
iPhone that many businesses love," Apple Chief Operating
Officer Tim Cook said in October. "Clearly, there are some
businesses buying them and very much enjoying them."
An Apple spokeswoman declined to discuss future iPhone
plans, saying only that the company was happy so many software
makers were interested.
Analysts who follow the company speculate it may eventually
offer a model with a keyboard, or use technology that mimics
the sensation of pressing real keys by making the phone vibrate
for a split-second when the screen is touched.
"If they get those pieces together, it would make iPhone a
much stronger competitor," Wu added.
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