What is BlackBerry Mobile Fusion?

Earlier today we posted the RIM press release announcing BlackBerry Mobile Fusion. They just wrapped up a webinar which gave more details about this coming service, but the question many have is just what is BlackBerry Mobile Fusion?

The simplest answer is that Mobile Fusion is a Mobile Device Management(MDM) platform that fuses the deployment and management of multiple device platforms to on console. It should be said that this is nothing new and there are many MDM options out there, but for my it's exciting because with the Fusion announcement we have a better look at how the PlayBook and BBX devices will be handled at the corporate enterprise level.

Mobile Fusion will allow a corporate admin to provision multiple devices on multiple platforms for one user. In an example in the webinar a user had a BlackBerry Torch 9180, BlackBerry PlayBook, iPhone 4S and a Samsung Galaxy Tab setup under his profile. Fusion connects to BES 5.0.3 and higher allowing for deployment of BES IT policies on the BlackBerry smartphone and device management in a one-stop-shop console.

As you can see it's just a matter of clicking on the appropriate tab of the device you wish to administer. One thing that RIM emphasized several times is that the Mobile Fusion will allow the users to still "have fun with their device". Users want choice, flexibility and fun with their smartphone and Fusion allows for that while not comprising corporate security. The system will utilize the BlackBerry Balance protocol which puts up a wall between corporate and personal information and data.

Some interesting features outlined today are:

• Employee self-service site, which allows user to remote wipe and remote lock device
• No limits on number of devices a user can have provisioned
• Mobile Fusion is capable of managing up to 10,000 devices at any one time
• Fully supports virtualized server environments

Although no pricing details are available at the moment, they have stated that this product will be competitive with what current market offers.  RIM is accepting requests from the corporate community to enter a beta beginning January. To be considered for the beta, customers are being directed to their RIM account manager. BlackBerry Mobile Fusion is expected to launch in March 2012.

As an incentive for current BES clients to upgrade from an older version of BES to 5.0.3 they are offering a free 16GB BlackBerry PlayBook when an upgrade is purchased.