RIM: personal and professional data to son be separated

Research in Motion has promised the BlackBerry Balance system which will soon allow for personal and professional data to be separated on BlackBerry handsets.

Facing the threat from other mobile OS’ which are starting to seep into the professional Smartphone segment, the Canadian manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM) are preparing new initiatives to try and keep their lead in the field: offering strict separation between personal and professional data on their handsets.

A RIM representative, Jeff McDowell, has indicated that it will be possible in the coming months to have a BlackBerry which will be two telephones in one, allowing enterprises to better secure access to professional information, while allowing employees to use their telephone for personal needs.

"There are two fundamental user profiles for Smartphone’s - personal and professional users. The problem is that there are conflicts between the two", he points out. The system, nicknamed BlackBerry Balance, will be able to separate BES data (BlackBerry Enterprise System) from other uses like the web browser and social networks.


The PlayBook should be compatible
Carriers have already started testing the solution which should appear in the United States in the coming two months. BlackBerry Balance will also be available on the PlayBook tablet, in association with a BlackBerry Smartphone, with the tablet not being directly compatible with the BES system.

The PlayBook tablet should have a catalogue of about 4000 applications at its launch (in March 2011). It will also be able to run Microsoft’s collaboration tool SharePoint to try and distinguish it from Apple’s iPad, a device also trying to make headways into businesses.