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Tim Cook signs SAP for iOS – SANA app pact

Apple adds software giant to the IBM collection

Apple and SAP are partnering to create native iOS apps for the enterprise firm's HANA platform.

The pair plan an iOS SDK for HANA Cloud Platform, targeting those building enterprise apps on Apple’s iPhones and iPad using SAP’s platform-as-a-service.

SAP will develop native apps using Swift, Apple’s two-year-old programming language, combined with SAP’s Fiori UI for mobile devices that supports HTML5.

According to Apple, apps will “take full advantage” of iPad and iPhone features such as TouchID, location services and notifications. Also planned is a training academy for developers, partners and customers building enterprise using the planned SDK.

This is the second time consumer device maker Apple has partnered with an enterprise runner on mobile. In 2014 the fruity firm announced a tablet and smartphone deal with IBM, named MobileFirst.

The agreement was to build industry-specific apps for iPhone and iPad, to build IBM cloud services optimized for iOS, and for IBM to sell Apple devices with industry-specific applications and services built in.

This time, Apple’s chief executive Tim Cook paid homage to SAP, calling the firm a “leader in enterprise software.”

SAP has 310,000 customers. HANA is the company’s in-memory database that’s become SAP’s big bet for the future of its business applications. HANA now underpins its cloud service and has been designated the database layer for the new version of SAP’s trademark ERP suite – SAP S/4HANA.

SAP claims 3,200 customers are using S/4HANA.

SAP’s chief executive Bill McDermott said in a statement that he reckoned the partnership with Apple would enable the delivery of “live data to people wherever and whenever they chose to work.” ®

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