Google announces Android for Work ready to go
Google announced that the Android for Work initiative the company has been working on for a year is ready to go, with partners like Cisco, Box, Citrix, HTC, LG, Sony, and SAP, to develop solutions that build on Android for the workforce. Rajen Sheth —
[…] for the majority of workers, smartphones and tablets are underutilized in the workplace. Their business and innovation potential remain largely untapped.
The initiative will leverage Android for Work features, like enhanced security for sensitive data and app management (Work Profiles); the Android for Work app, which provides ‘secure mail, calendar, contacts, documents, browsing and access to approved work apps’ and can be controlled by IT; Google Play for Work, so that apps can be managed and deployed; and a suite of productivity tools, like email, calendar, contacts, as well as editing for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations.
Getting the most out of Android for Work — like Work Profiles — requires Android 5.0 Lollipop, but other capabilities can be access with Android 4.0 or later.
Last year, Google acquired Divide (see Google buys Divide), and much of the Android for Work platform is clearly based on that technology.
This announcement followed on news earlier this week of the new Inbox email client being made available for those using Google Apps for Work. (A bad week for me to get the flu.)
The initiative is indirect competition with Apple’s push in the enterprise, and it’s partnership with IBM to get there. The stock market responded with an Apple stock price drop of 2.6% following the Android for Work announcement.