SAN MATEO (05/25/2000) - Acknowledging Sybase Inc.'s deeper foray into the mobile and wireless market, company officials confirmed that new Sybase subsidiaries iAnywhere Solutions and Casio Computer Co. Ltd. on Thursday signed an agreement to put iAnywhere wireless products and services on Casio mobile devices.
The move comes a little more than a week after Sybase unveiled its wireless services branch on May 17. Several other wireless vendors are already signed on with iAnywhere Solutions, including BellSouth Corp. Wireless Data, Palm Inc., Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM), and Symbian Ltd.
"Sybase wants to have as many relationships with as many major players as possible," said Carl Olafson, research director at International Data Corp., in Framingham, Massachusetts. "The more devices they have a presence on, the more ubiquitous they would seem to be."
Thursday's alliance also signifies a push by Casio to claim a stronger presence in the PDA (personal digital assistant) and pocket PC markets, according to Jose Santa Ana, an analyst at Dataquest Inc., in San Jose, California.
"This is probably Casio's effort to catch up with Palm," Santa Ana said. "PDAs are not just about scheduling anymore, and Casio is trying to leverage this technology."
Details of the partnership, signed Thursday by Sybase CEO John Chen and Casio Executive Vice President Yukio Kashio, will be formally announced on June 5, according to Sybase officials.
Sybase Inc., in Emeryville, California, is at www.sybase.com. Casio Computer Co. Ltd., in Dover, New Jersey, is at www.casio.com.