Palm Teams Up With Vodafone, Microsoft for European Treo

By Jennifer LeClaire
TechNewsWorld

Palm's new Treo smartphone for European users will use Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system and will operate on Vodafone's 3G/UMTS network. The firms are targeting a large, untapped market for real-time push e-mail, as only an estimated 2 percent of business e-mail boxes worldwide are accessed currently via mobile devices.

(Nasdaq: PALM) on Thursday announced it is teaming up with Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) in hopes of expanding the adoption of wireless push e-mail in Europe.

The UK, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands will have first dibs on the collaborative Palm Treo smartphone, which will operate on Vodafone's 3G/UMTS network and use Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system. The phone is expected to be available before the end of the calendar year.

Palm "Partnering with Vodafone, a world-class mobile operator, is a significant step to accelerate our geographic expansion and serve more European customers," said John Hartnett, Palm senior vice president of worldwide sales and customer relations. "This collaboration will provide a powerful tool for enterprise customers that delivers on the Palm promise of ease of use and lets mobile professionals be fully productive away from the office." Read more...