PalmSource and Good gang up on Blackberry maker

Palm's software group and start-up Good Technology are teaming to take on Research In Motion - provider of the Blackberry wireless email device - and attract more interest from large businesses.

Palm announced on its website late yesterday that PalmSource will work with Good Technology to bring Good's wireless synchronisation software, called GoodLink, to the Palm operating system. Good's software lets customers wirelessly access email and corporate data from a handheld device. PalmSource develops software for portable devices, most notably the operating system on Palm handhelds.

"This alliance provides our licensees with another valuable enterprise service that promotes cost savings," PalmSource CEO David Nagel said in a release.

Both companies have been working to attract more business from the enterprise market, which analysts have noted is a major growth opportunity for handheld makers. However, large companies have been slow to adopt handhelds. The Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM has been relatively successful in garnering interest from big business but even it has only 355,000 subscribers as of 1 June.

Good Technology and RIM are in the process of suing each other over patents.

PalmSource also announced that consumer electronics giant Samsung Electronics has renewed its Palm OS licence up until 2005. Samsung uses Palm OS to develop smartphones, which combine the capabilities of a handheld and a mobile. Samsung began licensing the OS in 2000.

The handheld maker is in the process of raising additional funding to complete the separation of the two units.

Richard Shim writes for CNET News.com.