Lots of news coming out of the BlackBerry Developer Conference today!

RIM has announced the BlackBerry Academic Program which provides colleges and universities content to help learn about developing for the BlackBerry platform. Course content is currently available for mobile application development, administration of BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry support.

• Mobile Application Development Courses – Students can learn about the tools and techniques for developing applications for BlackBerry smartphones. Courses cover topics such as BlackBerry smartphone features and functionality, user interface design, multimedia application development, mobile web application development and Java® application development.
• Administration Courses – Mobile communication and collaboration tools continue to play a large role in boosting the productivity of enterprise workforces, and the need for trained professionals to administer and support mobile solutions has grown with it. There are over 200,000 BlackBerry® Enterprise Server installations globally and trained professionals are needed to maintain and support these deployments.
• Support Courses – Students are trained to work in technical call centers or IT support environments in support of the BlackBerry solution. The Support courses also include information that can help prepare students for the corresponding BlackBerry Certification exam.

Over 500 students have already taken courses in the program and universities in Canada and the US are beginning to offer courses and course content from the program in their curriculum. For more info visit blackberry.com/academic or check out the press release after the jump.

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Security is very important to businesses, which is why many trust the security that BlackBerry offers. Last week I posted about BlackBerry’s 26 advatanges over the iPhone, one of my favorites being:

Blackberry is an encrypted military-grade security platform, with 100% market share at FBI, CIA, White House, Congress, Department of Defense, major consultancies and major investment banks. In contrast, iPhone has security vulnerabilities.

RIM announced today a new model for their BlackBerry Smart Card Reader that is a lightweight, wearable, ISO 7816 compliant card reader that enables proximity controlled access to a users BlackBerry and computer.

Features:

• Enhanced Design – a sleeker design measuring only 3.98” x 2.4” x 0.57” and weighing only 2.26 oz. makes the peripheral more comfortable to wear. It also features a larger display and backlighting for easier viewing, as well as power management features that can extend battery life between charges (900mAh integrated lithium ion battery).
• Increased Security – when used with the BlackBerry® Enterprise Solution, the new BlackBerry Smart Card Reader offers additional security options that can be set by the IT administrator.
  • Additional Content Protection – IT administrators can configure settings to allow handset passwords to work only if the BlackBerry Smart Card Reader is within range. These settings add another layer of protection on top of the handset password and will also be enforcable for a secondary password* required to unlock encrypted data on the handset.
  • More Complex Bluetooth Passwords – the previous BlackBerry Smart Card Reader model supported a randomly generated 8-digit numeric Bluetooth pairing PIN and this new model can now support more complex Bluetooth pairing PINs with both characters (symbols, letters, capital letters) and numbers.
• Support for a Wide Range of Smart Cards – the BlackBerry Smart Card Reader supports all ISO 7816 compliant smart cards and provides out of the box support for Personal Identity Verification (PIV) cards, Common Access Cards (CAC) and Safenet 330 cards.

The new BlackBerry Smart Card Reader is expected to be available in September and is being previewed this week at the LandWarNet 2009 Conference in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

For more info visit blackberry.com/go/smartcardreader or check out the full press release after the jump.

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Some highlights from the press release:

• Zenprise, Inc., a leader in automating mobile management, today released Zenprise Device Manager, a new module for Zenprise MobileManager that enables organizations to remotely support BlackBerry® smartphones.
• Zenprise Device Manager installs a micro agent over the air (OTA), eliminating the need for the user to physically bring their BlackBerry smartphone to IT to enable functionality. Once installed, a help desk operator or BlackBerry Enterprise Solution administrator can make a secure connection with the agent on the smartphone to view real-time information.
• BlackBerry smartphones continue to replace laptops in the field as tools for accessing business applications and confidential data.
• Key features of Zenprise Device Manager include a:
  • Device Locator: The Device Locator feature proactively finds lost or stolen GPS-enabled BlackBerry smartphones by pinpointing the exact location of the handset on a Google map. Access to this capability can be restricted and controlled based on an organization’s security and privacy policies. This capability is critical to the retrieval of missing handsets, which can save organizations millions in lost hardware and corporate data.
  • Device Task Manager: Within Zenprise Device Manager, Zenprise provides real-time information on device and application performance. The Device Task Manager feature enables IT to drill down and diagnose potential issues such as battery temperature, signal strength, available and allocated memory, and key service book configurations on a BlackBerry smartphone. The ability to find and fix issues remotely significantly lowers costs for enterprise IT and improves service levels.
  • Device Auditor: In addition to remotely identifying all third party applications installed on a BlackBerry smartphone, the Device Auditor feature details which applications are currently running. As a result, an IT department could determine if an employee’s favorite game is consuming too much memory and triggering an issue. By understanding which applications are installed and running, Device Manager enables enterprise IT to avoid potential security and compliance risks.
• Zenprise Device Manager currently supports BlackBerry smartphones running OS version 4.2 or greater and is available as an option of Zenprise MobileManager. Pricing begins at $20 per user. To learn more about Device Manager for BlackBerry Enterprise Solution environments, go to www.zenprise.com/products.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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Some highlights from the press release:

• HP (NYSE:HPQ) and Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq:RIMM) (TSX:RIM) today announced they are establishing a strategic alliance to deliver a portfolio of solutions for business mobility on the BlackBerry® platform.
• The solutions, which include support for BlackBerry® Enterprise Server 5.0, are focused on increasing service levels, reducing operations costs and improving productivity for customers.
• At this year’s Wireless Enterprise Symposium in Orlando, Fla., HP will be demonstrating two new solutions – HP CloudPrint for BlackBerry® smartphones and HP Operations Manager for BlackBerry Enterprise Server.
• In addition, HP delivers services and products to optimize customers’ mobility infrastructures
• More information is available at www.blackberry.com/hp.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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Some highlights from the press release:

• Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM)(TSX: RIM) today announced the availability of BlackBerry® Enterprise Server 5.0 – the next generation of RIM’s secure, push-based server software for business mobility. Version 5.0 supports advanced IT administration features and smartphone controls that help improve the productivity of mobile workers and more effectively meet the demands of large-scale, mission critical enterprise deployments.
• BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 enables a secure, centrally managed link between BlackBerry® smartphones and enterprise systems, applications, corporate phone environments (with BlackBerry® Mobile Voice System) and wireless networks.
• BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 Enhancements and Key Features
• Support for New Smartphone Features
• RIM is also announcing today new technical support, professional services, and training and certification programs to help BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 customers achieve the best possible performance and return on investment from their BlackBerry smartphone deployments
• Also announced today, BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 has obtained Common Criteria Evaluation Assurance Level 4 (EAL 4+) certification (see separate release). The Common Criteria is an international standard for validating that IT products meet specific security requirements. Certifications are recognized by 26 countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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By Judy Mottl:

Research in Motion (RIM) is moving to retain its already dominant hold on the enterprise mobility market, readying a new version of its BlackBerry Enterprise Server that promises to reduce IT costs and labor.

RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM) plans the new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 (BES) to ship during second quarter with a host of new management capabilities. Those include over-the-air device activation, downtime scheduling and simpler role administration, according to a presentation detailing the launch. RIM spokespeople were not available to comment further on the release by press time.

RIM’s news comes at a time when the BlackBerry maker is feeling the effects of slowing IT spending. The company said yesterday that it’s business customers are holding off on upgrades — a fact that it expects to negatively impact its next quarterly results.

But as corporate layoffs and budget slashing — especially within RIM’s large customer base of financial companies — is impacting tech spending, enterprises are looking for more cost-efficient tools and technologies.

Read more @ InternetNews.com