IPhone 4 Challenges BlackBerry in Businesses

While consumers all over the world wait in long lines for the brand new iPhone, Apple's new product has not only targeted these loyal fans. Apple and its iPhone are ready to enter the world of business. Companies like Bausch & Lomb Inc. have already purchased the new iPhone for their employees. Other companies also opted to use iPhone instead of the BlackBerry. In early 2010, Baush & Lomb Inc., a major supplier of eye health products, has already targeted iPhone as important and standard equipment for its sales team. Today, there are over 1,200 sales employees in this company who are equipped with the new iPhone.

Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM)'s BlackBerry has long been businesses' standard smart phone for their employees. This is mainly because RIM enables businesses' technology departments to manage employees' equipped BlackBerry and ensure their security. Most information technology professionals view iPhone as a toy. So many businesses also banned iPhone as a business cell phone.

Even though BlackBerry is still the most popular business cell phones and about 70% information technology departments of businesses currently support the usage of BlackBerry, already about 29% businesses choose to support iPhone. Last year, only about 17% businesses support iPhone. Moreover, in 2007, when iPhone was first introduced, the percentage of businesses that chose to support iPhone was, 0.

Businesses choose iPhone mostly because their employees like iPhone over BlackBerry. Many employees even claim to be willing to pay for the bills of the iPhones. For AT&T, about 40% of their iPhones are sold to businesses or those whose purchases are subsidized by businesses. Although Apple does not make advertisements of iPhones' advantages over BlackBerry, Apple has already worked harder to increase iPhone's attractiveness to businesses. Many companies, including Bausch & Lomb Inc., choose iPhone as their business cell phone because it allows companies to send and receive electronic data tables and contract management software.

By January 2010, about 70% of the Fortune 100 businesses had already been testing or using iPhone. Even though Apple's focus is still on consumers, Apple has already increased sales employees to promote iPhone to businesses. Microstrategy, a business intelligence technology company, plans to give iPhone to more employees. When the BlackBerry no longer works for its employees, Microstrategy will give them iPhone instead of a new BlackBerry. This company currently has about 1000 Blackberries and 400 iPhones, in which 200 iPhones were purchased by employees.

RIM, sensing the encroachment from Apple and iPhone into their business, begins to work harder to develop their products. RIM, on the other hand, also makes progress in the consumer market to offset the losses of market share in the businesses market. The new iPhone 4 will provide more standard applications for businesses, including better wireless sending software and more security tools.