Consumerization of IT

RIM is losing the enterprise to Apple and Google even though Apple and Google haven’t put much effort into marketing their phones as business tools. Consumers are increasingly tech-savvy and know what the devices in their hands are capable of, and are insisting that IT shops provide mobile access to e-mail at the very least. While IT has historically been wary of consumer devices, it’s getting harder for IT shops to say no to the iPhone and Android because both have boosted support for Exchange ActiveSync, the de facto standard for bringing corporate e-mail to non-BlackBerry phones. BlackBerry offers more administration options, but most businesses may be satisfied with the core features available from competitors, like encryption, password unlock, forced PIN entry and remote wipes. The combination of consumer preferences, iPhone and Android becoming good enough for most business scenarios, and last week’s lengthy BlackBerry outage give businesses fewer reasons to stick with RIM.