Microsoft Communicator Mobile for Nokia Debuts

REDMOND, Washington and ESPOO, Finland, May 5, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today, Microsoft and Nokia (NYSE: NOK) launched the first application from their alliance around mobile productivity, Microsoft Communicator Mobile for Nokia devices. This new unified communications client connects directly with a company's communications systems to streamline mobile collaboration. Owners of a number of Symbian based Nokia Eseries smartphones can download the English version today from Nokia's Ovi Store, the easiest place to get content on their Nokia device.

"Our alliance with Nokia aims to bring the Office productivity experience to the millions of people using Nokia smartphones around the world," says Kirt Debique, General Manager at Microsoft. "With the arrival of Communicator Mobile for Nokia today, we have a great start to fulfilling our joint vision."

Communicator Mobile enables people to see their colleagues' availability, and click to communicate with them using the best method, from IM to email, text to phone call. The names and status of colleagues are embedded directly into the devices' contacts application, enabling people to update their own presence, start and join instant messaging sessions, and begin calls directly from the contact card.

"This application really provides a much more efficient way to work with others as you can see if someone is busy or available, and the best way to start a conversation with them," says Ukko Lappalainen, Vice President at Nokia. "It also meets all of the requirements for enterprise: cost effective to implement, secure, familiar and reliable."

The launch is the first product from the alliance - announced last August - which was the first time either company had embarked on an agreement of this scope and nature. Since then, the two companies have been collaborating on the design and development of new solutions, as well as embarking on joint marketing efforts around others they already share.

"As part of our push to constantly enhance our unified communications proposition, we are keen to extend the collaborative benefits of Microsoft Communicator Mobile to Nokia devices," says Scott Petty, Director at Vodafone Group Business Services. "Communicator Mobile offers great potential for our large corporate customer base who have already deployed Communicator for desktop and now are looking to extend that existing infrastructure to mobile."

"We trial all potential offerings ourselves and have been very happy with the internal response and productivity increase we have experienced using Microsoft Communicator Mobile," says Roger Wuthrich-Hasenbohler, Executive Vice President at Swisscom / Webcall. "Having these two companies work together is really helping us serve the needs of our customers."

This new application, available initially for Nokia E72 and Nokia E52, adds to the work Nokia is already doing in optimizing direct access to email and other personal information with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync. The companies plan to deliver Communicator Mobile for Nokia pre-installed on select Nokia smartphones in the future and plan to support additional devices, including the recently announced Nokia E5.

Microsoft Launches Unified Comms Client for Nokia Phones

Nokia and Microsoft on Wednesday announced the availability of Microsoft Communicator Mobile for Nokia, a unified communications client for Nokia's Eseries smartphones. The software is the first result of the partnership they announced in August last year.
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The Communicator Mobile client connects with Microsoft's Office Communications Server 2007 R2, and let users see their colleagues' availability and communicate with them using instant messaging, e-mail, SMS (Short Message Service) or a call from the phone's address book, according to Nokia.

The ability to see when and how colleagues are available -- commonly referred to as presence -- and send instant messages are the key features, a Nokia spokesman said via e-mail.

The voice calls will be made via the phone network, but a future version will also be able to make calls over IP, he added, without providing any details. Today, voice-over-IP calls can instead be made using Microsoft's PC client, Office Communicator, which also integrates with Office Communications Server.

Initially, Microsoft Communicator Mobile will be available on the Nokia E72 and the E52 handsets, and owners of those devices can download the English version of the software from Nokia's Ovi Store. Nokia plans to ship the software on certain smartphones in future, and to support additional devices, including the recently announced Nokia E5.

Until now, Microsoft has only offered its enterprise customers a Windows Mobile-based mobile client, something that has held Office Communications Server back, according to Steve Blood, vice president and agenda manager at Gartner. Companies have instead been turning to PBX and third-party software vendors that offer a wider support for different mobile operating systems.

The addition of support for Symbian is a step in the right direction, but now Microsoft has to "dance with the devil" and also add support for the iPhone, Android-based smartphones and Research In Motion's BlackBerry phones, according to Blood.

Since the announcement in August, Nokia and Microsoft have been collaborating on the design and development of "new solutions". However, they have not yet said what that will lead to beyond Communicator Mobile.