Chris Gilmer , Monday, October 31st, 2005

The future of Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) looks like it will be licensing software to other phone companies. They have recently announced that the Palm Treo 650 will install their push e-mail software on the Palm Treo 650 early next year.

Palm, Inc. and Research In Motion (RIM) announced that they are working together to bring BlackBerry® Connect™ to the Palm® Treo™ 650 smartphone. The companies expect the solution to be available in the United States and internationally starting in early calendar 2006.

Through RIM’s BlackBerry Connect licensing program, Palm will enable its Treo 650 and future Palm OS® based Treo smartphones with secure, push-based wireless email via BlackBerry Enterprise Serverâ„¢. The solution will enable the following:

• push-based email using BlackBerry Connect with Palm’s VersaMail® email client;
• support for Microsoft® Exchange and IBM Lotus® Dominoâ„¢;
• wireless calendar synchronization;
• remote address lookup of corporate email directory;
• convenient email-attachment viewing;
• Triple DES encryption; and
• IT policy enforcement and commands (such as remotely disabling or wiping email and PIM data from a device in the event it is lost or stolen).

The award-winning Palm Treo 650 smartphone makes it easier than ever for mobile professionals to stay connected. With carrier activation, the Treo 650 combines a compact, full-featured mobile phone with email, an organizer, messaging and web access, allowing users to organize and simplify their business and personal lives all in one place. The Treo 650 offers integrated Bluetooth® wireless technology, a high-resolution screen, multimedia capabilities, a removable battery, non-volatile memory and a backlit QWERTY keyboard.

BlackBerry Connect will be available for new and existing Treo 650 users through select carriers. Pricing and distribution details will be provided at a later date.

About Palm
Palm, Inc., a leader in mobile computing, strives to put the power of computing in people’s hands so they can access and share their most important information. The company’s products for consumers, mobile professionals and businesses include Palm® handheld computers, Palm Treo™ smartphones, Palm LifeDrive™ mobile managers, as well as software, services and accessories.
More information about Palm, Inc. is available at www.palm.com.

About Research In Motion (RIM)
Research In Motion is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, phone, SMS messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications. RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity to data. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies are used by thousands of organizations around the world and include the BlackBerry® wireless platform, the RIM Wireless Handheld™ product line, software development tools, radio-modems and software/hardware licensing agreements. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM). For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.