HSBC bank could order 200,000 iPhones

21 August 2008

Will the Blackberry make way for the iPhone in the corporate sector?

Reports say that the HSBC bank could dump its Blackberrys for 200,000 Apple iPhone mobile phones as its standard mobile device.

"We are actually reviewing iPhones from a HSBC Group perspective...and when I say that, I mean globally," Brenton Hush, HSBC's Australia and New Zealand chief information officer, told the ZDNet.com.au website. "A decision on a piece of hardware like that would potentially be deployed, conservatively, to 200,000 people. You know, it's a big decision, especially when you have an existing fleet out there. But it's definitely something we are considering from a HSBC Group perspective," he said. "We always explore the potential application of new technologies, and this is no different."

The bank has an international staff of 300,000. A move from Blackberry to iPhone (which now feature more corporate-friendly tools and platforms) would be a major blow for RIM, if the proposed move does, in fact, occur.

Click to read the ZDnet story