Orange chooses Smartner for push email

Smartner has been signed up by Orange to help users of that network get email on their mobile phones.

Duality is the name of an email delivery service from the Scandinavian mobile messaging company - email is automatically delivered to a user's handset rather than being requested or downloaded each time. It will be available to some 45 million Orange customers as of its launch.

Orange points out that it can be used on any of its smart phones, though a release singles out the SPV C500. Orange is the only UK provider of various SPVs, which are from a Taiwanese device-maker and run Microsoft Windows Mobile operating system.

Smartner Duality allows users to stay in sync with Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes from a smart phone or wirelessly connected PDA.

The big success in the mobile email space has been the BlackBerry from Canadian company RIM. However, its devices are optimised for email rather than a range of applications and of course run only RIM email software on the client.

Of the four main UK mobile operators, Orange has been the least enthusiastic about the BlackBerry but instead offered a wide range of handsets, offering exclusive deals for devices such as SPVs and the Treo smart phone from PalmOne.