Exchange Server 2003 – It’s a ‘Good’ Thing

Hoping to garner more market share from its rivals, mobile platform maker Good Technology Monday aligned itself with Microsoft to make compatible software.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based startup said it is working with the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant to produce GoodLink and GoodInfo support for Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 and its ActiveSync environment.

Good makes products similar to those that made Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM famous: a pocket-sized device, wireless corporate e-mail (called GoodLink) to help keep mobile employees in the loop; applications; and server software. The corporate data center product is called GoodInfo.

When lined up side by side with RIM’s Blackberry, it’s tough to see major differences. In Good’s G100 handheld, there is access to e-mail and the Web, and it appears to be corporate-friendly, with its GoodInfo feature — all of which is some of what RIM has to offer with its products and services.

Microsoft already has an extensive contract with RIM, but Microsoft Exchange vice president Mohsen Al-Ghosein said the choice to go with GoodLink complements Microsoft’s ActiveSync’s capabilities by, “broadening the range of devices, networks and platforms customers can use to wirelessly sync with Exchange.”

Currently, Good customers can choose GoodLink for existing Exchange platforms and in Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 when it ships. The company said its GoodLink platform continuously synchronizes corporate data with a variety of handheld appliances and development platforms, including the Good G100 wireless handhelds, RIM 950 and RIM 957.

“Good’s strategic relationship with Microsoft ensures close technical collaboration as we develop support for Exchange Server 2003 and extend GoodLink capabilities to the Pocket PC,” Good CEO Danny Shader said in a statement. “We continually seek ways to increase the freedom of choice we offer customers by providing broad platform, network and device support to safeguard their investment for the wireless future.”

The company says it is also developing GoodLink for the Palm OS and Pocket PC platforms. GoodLink currently is available on the Cingular Wireless Mobitex data network, and Good Technology is developing the solution for the GPRS and CDMA/1XRTT cellular networks.

Good has been on a role as of late with a fresh round of series C funding to the tune of $27 million from financial investors, led by Broadview Capital Partners. Existing investors including Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers and Benchmark Capital participated on a pro-rata basis.

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