The announcement with Nokia on mobile device customization will see the two companies, together with the OS owner Symbian Ltd, working together to create an Orange Signature software package, which is essentially the app delivery layer on the phone, for the S60 UI on Symbian OS.
Signature is Orange’s strategy for delivering a consistent, Orange-branded user experience on handsets regardless of the underlying software plumbing, i.e. the OS and UI. And, indeed, this latest announcement is similar in its aims to one the Paris-headquartered mobile group made in August with the Japanese ISV, Access Co Ltd, to develop an Orange Application Package for Access Linux Platform.
In that scenario, the Orange package will run on top of ALP and contain the key apps the mobile operator wants to deliver to customers on its Signature Devices. In the case of the deal with Nokia, the plumbing will be S60 and Symbian OS, and the handsets will primarily be from Nokia itself, though S60 could also be licensed by ODMs for made-to-order Orange-branded phones.
Still, the main thrust will be around Nokia’s own S60 phones, which include in particular its Eseries of enterprise-focused smart phones, and indeed the deal, points to an OS strategy at Orange of Linux for mass-market, consumer and multimedia devices and Symbian for smart phones, though probably not entirely to the exception of devices running Microsoft’s Windows Mobile platform.
Of course, Orange Signature software already runs on S60 devices today, the improvement as a result of this deal being greater cost efficiency and shorter time-to-market. Yves Maitre, VP of devices at Orange, said the deal was part of its plan to bring increased consistency and efficiency to our Signature customization process.
In a parallel announcement, Orange Business Services (the former Equant) launched a managed push email service for multinational enterprises based on the Intellisync Mobile Suite, which has been a Nokia product since it acquired Intellisync in November last year.
In unveiling the offering, OBS highlighted the heterogeneity of the platform’s support. Our multinational customers are using a variety of devices and messaging infrastructure, so we were seeking a truly open and future-proof mobile platform to address their various requirements, said Guillaume Freyburger, enterprise mobility product manager at Orange Business Services.
The Intellisync platform fits the bill, because it can work with Exchange, Domino, SMTP and IMAP/POP3 servers, as well as handsets running WM5, Symbian and Palm OS.
Freyburger also pointed to the future development of services beyond email, based on the Intellisync platform. Looking forward, the platform’s sophisticated capabilities will enable us to mobilize other business critical applications in addition to mail, as well as effectively manage mobile devices fleets, providing cost savings and reducing total cost of ownership for our multinational customers, he said.
