Cingular Wireless in November will let subscribers use Research in Motion's BlackBerry software on a non-BlackBerry device
for the first time, the mobile operator announced Wednesday at the CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment show in San Francisco.
The BlackBerry Connect software will be available on the Nokia 9300, a flip-open handset with a QWERTY keyboard, Cingular
said in a statement Wednesday. BlackBerry Connect is software that RIM is beginning to license to third parties for use on
non-RIM devices. RIM's BlackBerry, one of the first handhelds to have a keyboard, has become a familiar sight as business
users rely on it for real-time e-mail on the road. Cingular said it will be the first U.S. operator to offer BlackBerry Connect.
Enterprises will be able to use BlackBerry Connect with the Blackberry Enterprise Server, and individuals and small businesses
can use it to access Internet service provider and Web-based e-mail accounts through BlackBerry Internet Service, according
to Cingular. Customers could also use the individual and enterprise BlackBerry services at the same time.
Cingular, with a national GSM/GPRS (Global System for Mobile communications/General Packet Radio Service) network and faster
infrastructure in many locations, is the largest mobile operator in the U.S., with more than 50 million subscribers. The 9300
will use Cingular's national EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution) network where available.
RIM is not about to give up on the hardware business. It announced at CTIA on Tuesday a deal with Intel Corp. to use that
company's upcoming mobile processor, code-named Hermon, in a phone to be launched in the fourth quarter. However, RIM is up
against emerging competitors, notably Good Technology, that make mobile e-mail software for many different devices.
Sprint Nextel, the nation's third-largest operator, plans to roll out BlackBerry Connect on PalmOS devices next year, said
Eric Martin, manager of business device marketing, in an interview at CTIA Wednesday. The company is responding to customer
requests, he said. Sprint currently offers Palm Treo handhelds running PalmOS.
"Not everyone is sold on the legacy RIM form factor," Martin said.
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