Exchange & ActiveSync – Coming soon to an iPhone near you

Apple did some announcing yesterday (March 6) regarding the "iPhone Software Roadmap".  One of the announcements was that you’ll be able to sync your Apple iPhone and perhaps your iPod Touch with your Exchange server account in the coming months.  As laid out in a "Live blog from Apple’s iPhone SDK announcement" by Tom Krazit – "Apple has licensed the Microsoft ActiveSync protocol, which will make it much easier to do push e-mail and contacts with Exchange servers".  Supposedly this is slated to happen with the next release of the iPhone software.  I’m not sure how well that’ll do on the Edge network connection they’re running on the iPhone, but it should do fairly well if you switch over to using wi-fi.  I’m assuming that this same concept will also port over to the iPod Touch as well, although it looks like those users will have to shell out some cash to get each update going forward, whereas the iPhone guys will get it for free.

iPhone Developer Program

Another announcement was the iPhone Developer Program.  It looks like (legal) third party apps are going to become a reality on these devices as well.  Always wanting to be in control (and in the revenue stream) – Apple will distribute them via iTunes.  It looks like the developers will get a 70% cut of the action and Apple will take 30% off the top.  Considering that the developers won’t have to worry about packaging, distribution and a storefront to distribute their apps, that doesn’t sound like too bad of a deal.

iFund

To help encourage and support such development efforts, an initiative to provide (from their website) "a $100M investment initiative that will fund market-changing ideas and products that extend the revolutionary new iPhone and iPod touch platform".  From what I gather, it looks like they’re interested in offering up to $100k in venture capital funding to help get the action rolling.  I might have to invest in a MacBook after all…$100k should cover the expense…

Doug White