Good Technology plans Domino support

Mobile data sync firm looks beyond Exchange

Mobile data software supplier Good Technology today pledged to extend its support for corporate email systems from Microsoft Exchange Server to IBM's Domino and Novell's Groupwise.

The company also announced a new version of GoodLink, its client-side software, that brings on board support for the Windows Mobile 2003 for Smartphones operating system.

Domino support is some way off: Good marketing chief Sue Forbes told The Register that product will not ship until H1 2006, so commercially available product could easily be 12 months away. The code comes courtesy of a deal Good has struck to acquire "assets and people" from wireless data specialist JP Mobile specifically to accelerate its push beyond the Exchange Server environment it has favoured to date. The acquisition will help Good's plan to target Groupwise users too.

Domino is the focal point, however, commanding as it does a strong market share in Europe and close to half of the Fortune 100 companies in the US, Forbes said. Good already claims to have sold its product to around 50 of the Fortune 100, so it's clearly after the rest, the better to unseat arch-rival RIM as the market leader.

Today also sees the launch of GoodLink 4.5, which not only incorporates support for Windows Mobile 2003 for Smartphone - it already supports the PocketPC version of the Microsoft mobile OS - but incorporates a number of tweaks to make it more suitable for phone screens than the larger PDAs and PDA-sized handsets it's been running on so far.

Good didn't provide any guidance on Windows Mobile 5.0 support, or offer an update on the availability of GoodLink for Symbian devices. Both will be essential if Good wants to win the support of European smart-phone users, who generally favour more phone-like handsets over the likes of the Palm Treo on which Good has built its US success.

Among the improvements made to the software, GoodLink's email module will now automatically search for contacts' phone numbers using email addresses, allowing users to phone email senders without having to search manually. Forbes said the app also sports an enhanced UI for smaller smart-phone screens.

GoodLink 4.5 applies the software's pro-active security policy maintenance system to newly supported devices, now enhanced with the ability to remotely delete policy transgressing applications alongside the remote provisioning feature introduced with the previous version. The code will install and upgrade third-party security apps over the air, checking periodically for updates. However, it will not install OS updates, Forbes admitted.

Sources familiar with the company's plans had indicated that the new release would support full device erasure, should a handheld be declared lost or stolen. And indeed, GoodLink 4.5 adds that feature.

GoodLink 4.5 will ship within the next two weeks, she added. Among the suppliers will be US carrier Sprint, which is joining Cingular as a supplier of Good's products. Other networks provide Good product in partnership with the software company. ®

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