CMS Watch recently released an updated report on the ECM market called the ECM Report 2009. One industry trend that this report identifies is the move by many companies towards the use of mobile applications. The report also identifies many ECM vendors as recognizing the trend towards mobile and introducing mobile ECM capabilities.
Alan Peltz-Sharpe, principal analyst at CMS Watch, said that “Information within ECM systems typically remains highly secured, but outside the application environment it becomes uncontrolled and unsecured. The move by ECM vendors to develop and support applications for remote and offline environments is an important step toward dealing with that challenge.”
Mobile as a ‘next step’ for ECM seems only natural. There has increasingly been a trend towards enabling web-based access to ECM systems, and with smart phones becoming ever more capable, it is only natural that ECM vwndors also start client software to run on mobile devices. Mobile devices have become incredibly popular: 171 million smart phones and 1.21 billion mobile handsets were sold in 2008 alone. And at the end of 2008 there were more than 4 billion active mobile devices globally.
Applications that could benefit from mobile ECM extensions enable are typically those with out-in-the-field employees. For those applications, mobile ECM is especially compelling and offers a high return on investment. Mobile application areas include insurance, health care, transporation and logistics and in-the-field technical support.
