Apple showed it’s serious about getting the popular iPhone into the enterprise Thursday as it released a beta of the iPhone Software Development Toolkit. At the iPhone Software Roadmap, Apple announced support for Microsoft’s ActiveSync technology, support for Microsoft Exchange, Cisco VPN (virtual private network) and centralized, wireless updates of all phones in the enterprise.

To prove Apple’s commitment to the enterprise, CEO Steve Jobs pulled out a number of endorsements from familiar companies, including Disney, Genentech and Nike, as well as its technology partners and game developers.

“Apple has really done their homework, addressing issues of shield, manageability and integration,” said Randy Brooks, Disney’s senior vice president for IT strategy and architecture. “We currently have hundreds of iPhone users and expect the demand to grow significantly with that release.”

An Uphill Battle

With support for Exchange ActiveSync, the iPhone “really delivers a true plug-and-play enterprise solution,” said Nike CIO Roland Paanakker, adding that his company “looks

forward to deploying more iPhones to more business users.”

But not so fast. Some analysts and corporate executives want a much closer look under the hood before they let employees bring iPhones into the enterprise. Apple won’t win the blessing of the enterprise with press-release quotes, said George McQuillister, client computing architect at Pacific Gas and Electric Co. “I will believe it when I see it,” he said.

His position is the same today as it was when the iPhone was first released, McQuill told ComputerWorld. “I was concerned it didn’t have the management controls and protection we needed.” Despite the upcoming iPhone 2.0 software, “it’s too early for the adoption stage,” McQuill said.

‘Jedi Hand Wave’

Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, “seemed to have performed a mighty Jedi hand wave” for “enforced protection policies,” “device configuration,” and “remote wipe,” said Andrew Storms, director of…

Orginal post by Top Tech News