Dell will shift thousands of its employees off RIM’s BlackBerry and over to its own smartphones.
The money-saving switch affects roughly 25,000 Dell employees who carry a company-issued BlackBerry. Dell employs around 100,000 people worldwide.
Dell is also launching an effort to convince its business customers to switch to the company’s smartphone.
The company’s BlackBerry users will be shifted over to use the new Dell Venue Pro, which runs on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 software.
Dell’s decision to move its employees off BlackBerry may come as little surprise, given its aspirations in the mobile device market. The company has frequently talked about using handheld devices as a gateway to sell and promote a broader suite of services.
Dell formally entered the smartphone market only late last year, and launched its first device in the US, the Aero, earlier this year. The Aero runs on Google’s Android software, as does Dell’s new 5in tablet, the Streak.
RIM has long been the dominant player in the corporate smartphone market, but has seen its market share eroded by companies such as Apple.
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