Pentagon think Adds iPhone Or Android Device

Right now the U.S. government will consider solutions for the procurement of iOS and Android in addition to those featuring RIM's BlackBerry OS, according to a new news from Reuters. That means RIM will no longer have an exclusive contract for the smartphone in the U.S. Department of Defense, although it will still be another choice option.

A word from the Defense Information Systems Agency are looking for companies to submit applications detailing how they can provide software to monitor and enforce security measures are strictly necessary for the sensitive defense-related operations. The potential size of any arrangement with the Department of Defense is very large: it could reach 8 million devices. However, DOD does not mean RIM will be left behind, in fact, BlackBerry Mobile Fusion cross-platform mobile device management solution is a software solution that could theoretically meet the needs of DOD.

RIM said in an interview with Reuters that it will offer the Fusion as a potential solution to consider. And while other organizations such as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has announced they will switch entirely on iPhone, BlackBerry still probably will not be kicked out of the Pentagon at all, at least in the near future.

In the end, we'll see how the contract will be awarded in April, according to Reuters. That could give RIM a chance to influence decisions by the new BlackBerry 10 devices, but also the possibility of an Apple or Android could affect DOD, the application ecosystem is ripe, which seems the main criteria for U.S. government bodies.