palmOne Licenses Microsoft Exchange Server for Treo Smartphones

On the back of last week's 'BlackBerry Connect' announcement, palmOne today announced that it has licensed Microsoft's Exchange Server ActiveSync protocol to enable the delivery of secure, wireless and direct synchronization between Microsoft Exchange Server 2003, part of Windows Server System, and future Treo smartphones.

The Treo will now be able to be easily added as a device supported by Exchange Server

The interesting thing is that while many mobile email solutions require a third-party server to be installed to act as a conduit between an email server and a mobile device, palmOne has integrated the Exchange Server ActiveSync protocol into its devices, eliminating the need for a third-party server and providing customers with a solution for secure, wireless email that is cost-effective and can be deployed quickly and easily.  End-users will benefit by having out-of-the-box capability to link to Exchange Server 2003 data, including email and calendar information, using palmOne's easy-to-use VersaMail client.

Anyone know what this will mean for the people over at GoodLink?

Perhaps some people at palmOne did listen to us after all when we stated that "The overall use of a system is directly proportional to the ease-of-use of that system."  This announcement is certainly a step in the right direction and I'm sure that many IT teams will rejoice at the thought of so easily maintaining the Treo line of products on their corporate networks.