Enterprise focus for BlackBerry strengthened with BES12 for mobile device management

Waterloo, Ont.-based smartphone manufacturer BlackBerry is strengthening its focus on the enterprise market with the launch of BlackBerry Enterprise Services 12 (BES12) the latest version of its flagship enterprise mobility management solution.

BES12 is application-enabled and unifies BES10 and BES5 onto one platform. A new promotional program will provide free migration to BES10 and a new pricing structure for customers to upgrade to BES12 and use a single trusted provider for enterprise mobility management. As an EMM platform BES is device-agnostic, supporting management of iOS and Android devices as well as BlackBerry smartphones.

“BES10 is the only mobility management solution that meets the highest security demands of regulated industries and is also flexible enough for BYOD,” said John Sims, president of global enterprise solutions at BlackBerry, in a statement. “This value proposition is why the new BES12 architecture is designed to ensure that the more than 80,000 existing BES customers can seamlessly migrate forward. As we execute on our long term vision, we will offer all customers the opportunity to move forward with us. The investment customers make in BlackBerry today will be a valuable investment for the future.”

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Features in BES12 will include enhanced multi-platform support by adding support for Windows Phone 8, backwards compatibility for all BlackBerry OS devices and future-proofing for new releases, advanced service management with proactive monitoring and systems tuning, support for multiple deployment models including on-premise, public cloud, private cloud and hybrid environments, and the ability to develop and deploy securely connected enterprise apps across all supported platforms.

BlackBerry’s new EZ Pass program will provide free migration for customers to move from BES and other MDM platforms to BES10. For current BlackBerry customers it will match any active existing on-premise BES license and any active license customers may have from other MDM vendors. New pricing and licensing tiers will also simplify MDM choices for enterprise clients.

Author: Jeff Jedras

A veteran technology and business journalist, Jeff Jedras began his career in technology journalism in the late 1990s, covering the booming (and later busting) Ottawa technology sector for Silicon Valley North and the Ottawa Business Journal, as well as everything from municipal politics to real estate.He later covered the technology scene in Vancouver before joining IT World Canada in Toronto in 2005, covering enterprise IT for ComputerWorld Canada. He would go on to cover the channel as an assistant editor with CDN.His writing has appeared in the Vancouver Sun, the Ottawa Citizen and a wide range of industry trade publications.