The iPhone may finally get the ability to connect to Exchange Server and make use of its wireless messaging and synchronization capabilities.  March 6th, 2008, Mary Jo Foley writing for ZDNet reported that on March 5 Apple and Microsoft had finally acknowledged a long expected licensing arrangement of Exchange ActiveSync for the iPhone.

“Today, Microsoft will be on hand at Apple headquarters as Apple announces it has licensed Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync for the iPhone. The agreement means iPhones will have built-in mobile access to Microsoft Exchange Server, letting users send and receive wireless email, manage their calendars, and view and edit tasks and contacts virtually anytime, anywhere.”

She continued, "Apple said today that they will build ActiveSync support right into the iPhone."  ActiveSync enables a mobile phone to synchronize email, calendars, tasks, and contacts with Exchange Server wirelessly in the same way as Windows Mobile Devices do today.

While the iPhone has appealed to many to business users as well as consumers it has been held back by its high price, lack of integration with Exchange, limited connectivity options and limited availablity. The ActiveSync licensing deal is one step toward realization of this goal and many commentators expect this to be followed by announcements on hardware availability thorugh more channels, including business tariffs.

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