Archive for the ‘Enterprise Mobility’ Category
Monday, October 29th, 2012
Chris Witeck, Director Product Marketing
We’ve talked about the impact of Windows 8 before on this blog discussing the impact of Windows 8 and the new Microsoft Surface device on the business/mobile worker.
Since that time I’ve had a chance to discuss these points with many of our customers. What I’ve consistently heard is that our customers are not in a rush to support Windows 8 on their standard IT-managed laptops, but I’ve also seen plenty of curiosity on the impact of Windows 8 on tablets, either impacting the organization’s BYOD policies as employees potentially bring in their own Windows 8 device or as competition to iPads and Android tablets for IT-provisioned tablets.
Well we’ve now arrived at the launch of Windows 8/Windows RT and an interesting array of devices, including Microsoft Surface. And to coincide with this launch I’m pleased to announce that iPass has support for Windows 8 with our iPass Open Mobile clients. Any customer who is using Open Mobile today will be able to provide Windows 8 support to users via our brand new Open Mobile client v1.0 for Windows Touch or via our updated Open Mobile client v2.3 for Windows.
Why two client versions? That has a lot to do with the different user experiences Microsoft is offering with Windows 8. I’ll describe the differences briefly below:
The new Open Mobile client v1.0 for Windows Touch is available for devices running Windows 8 or Windows RT and can be found at the Windows Store. This client, screenshot below, provides a brand new Windows 8 optimized user interface and provides connectivity to the iPass Mobile Network along with great user tools such as the iPass Hotspot Finder and Speed Test (which allows users to determine the quality of their current connection).
The upgraded iPass Open Mobile Client v2.3 for Windows is only available for devices running Windows 8 (it is not available for devices running Windows RT) and offers the full connectivity management experience that Open Mobile has provided with previous versions of Windows. This version is not available from the Windows Store and instead is distributed via standard Windows client distribution methods (so basically whatever method our customers use to distribute software to their Windows laptops). A user can launch the Open Mobile client from the new Windows 8 UI, and upon launching the client will see the traditional look/feel for Open Mobile appear.
So no matter what type of Windows 8 device a user is using, iPass has you covered. It will be interesting to see what type of traction Windows 8 gets with mobile professionals, but it is nice to know that if our customers see a bunch of new devices coming in with their employees in the coming weeks that iPass has them covered.
iPass Open Mobile and Windows 8 >>
Wednesday, October 24th, 2012
Karen Ambrose Hickey, Editor
In the new era of mobile devices, companies are now providing customers with tablets in areas such as Restaurants, Clothing merchandising, and Airlines.
In the article, Going Mobile? Make It More Than a Marketing Strategy, it’s not enough to provide your employees with tablets, like American Airlines, or to make your website more accessible to tablets, like Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.
This hit home as I was recently at a local restaurant (run by a chef from a large tech company). There are now displays on the tables so that you can order. This isn’t new, but what I noticed was how seamless this was with our server. He knew exactly what we had put in, and allowed us to mix digital with analog. I could easily order an additional item when he came to check on us. If anything, our meal came faster, and having the menu there, it was far too easy to put in a dessert order (upsell?).
Although there is increased discussion about BYOD to manage employee-purchased devices, IT departments will also need to consider customer-purchased or customer-provided devices. Do they provide customers with a standard set, which is easily managed, or allow a customer to connect their own?
From the article:
“More than 60% of the guests to the chain of exclusive hotels check in using an iPad rather than going to the front desk.” Consumers are showing preference for speed and convenience. “Apps let people check flight statuses in transit, find the nearest location of a chain store, or compare prices of goods on a shelf with what is available online or at other retailers.”
The article continues to ask questions so that an organization can begin to think about mobile strategies involving operations and customer support.
Read the full article >>
Beyond employees, to providing mobility to customers >>
Tuesday, October 16th, 2012
Karen Ambrose Hickey, Editor
With the BYOD trend and employees carrying almost 3 mobile devices, some IT organizations are trying to get ahead of unsecure, employee work arounds.
As I reported last week, according to our Mobile Workforce Report, 24% of mobile workers use a workaround (a bypass) to access corporate data.
In the article, Enterprise IT now competing with apps stores, mobile devices, from Networkworld.com, Lucas Mearian reports that…”Those trends are pushing IT shops to change, and change quickly, how they manage the growing number of devices and third-party apps their co-workers are using in the workplace, according to IT experts who spoke at the Consumerization of IT in the Enterprise (CITE).”
One IT operations manager commented that if a company focuses on securing the data rather than the device, then the company can be more flexible with its options.
Another executive said..”that if enterprises don’t begin developing their own internal app stores for employees to use, workers will find work-arounds that lack security and IT support. And if companies don’t deploy internal social networking sites…, collaboration tools… or secure web browsers.., users will find their own.”
Read the article >>
IT trying to get ahead of the BYOD trend >>
Friday, October 5th, 2012
Karen Ambrose Hickey, Editor
In our September Mobile Workforce Report, we asked some questions about security issues regarding smartphones and tablets.
Although most mobile workers haven’t had anything happen to their smartphones, 15% have broken or destroyed theirs. 4% have lost their phone and 2.4% had them stolen. Although the numbers are small, that’s still 64 out of every thousand employees that IT has to deal with.
73% of mobile workers said that IT requires security on their smartphone in order to access corporate data and 25% say it’s required for tablets. This data changes slightly if the company pays all or part of the smartphone and tablet costs. In this case, 83% of mobile workers have security for smartphones to access corporate data and 28% on tablets.
This trend of an increase in security when the company pays, continues:
Remote wipe capability:
- 54% of mobile workers report having remote wipe capability on their smartphone; but 59% if the company pays all or part.
- 29% report remote wipe on their tablet overall; 32% if the company pays all or part of the cost.
- Remote wipe is required slightly more in North America on average
Required passcode lock on smartphone or tablet:
- 76% of mobile workers are required to have a lock on their smartphone; compared to 83% if the company pays.
- 40% of tablet owners are required to have a lock on average; compared to 44% if the company pays.
So, then a mobile worker uses a workaround:
- 24% of mobile workers use a workaround (a bypass) to access corporate data; but this only rises to 25% if the company pays for some or all of the smartphone costs.
- 12% of tablet owners find a workaround, compared to 13% of company-funded tablets
- Employees that have paid for their own smartphone will use a workaround for a smartphone more (27%) but less for a tablet owners (9%)
Although BYOD gives a sense of ownership, if a company does not pay for some of the cost, the employee is less likely to have security on their device, but they are less compelled to workaround to access corporate data. However, the more benefits that IT and the company can provide a BYOD employee, such as providing negotiated rate plans, then employees will continue being productive with their device of choice.
Security and the mobile worker >>
Wednesday, October 3rd, 2012
Han Dong, Sr. Product Marketing Manager
We had quite a break from our Top 5 list for showing the value of deploying Open Mobile and using Wi-Fi for smartphones. For our fifth and final reason, we wanted to offer reason not only for the end user, but for IT especially.
5. Premium “command and control” services + Integration with Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions
iPass is not just a Wi-Fi network service. We also offer a broad range of services designed to assist IT managers to control the deployment, provisioning, access, and cost of Wi-Fi for mobile workers. The Open Mobile portal provides the dashboard for Administrators to rapidly create and customize Open Mobile profiles that define the user access and experience for multiple departments and/or groups within the organization. These profile(s) help IT manage the wireless access and costs incurred by specific categories of mobile users – from global executives to regional sales and field support personnel.
Additionally, iPass has relationships with leading MDM vendors such as MobileIron, to develop integrated solutions of connectivity, provisioning, and secure device management to assist larger organizations who are deploying smartphones and tablets across the enterprise.
Thanks for staying tuned with us and our 5 main reasons for deploying Open Mobile!
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Deploying Open Mobile and Wi-Fi for smartphones (last of 5-part series) >>
