BlackBerry Supports the Fast-Growing AppConfig Community

At BlackBerry, it has always been our goal to help customers transform their businesses – to help them securely build new workflows, processes, and functionality. App development plays a key role in that transformation. Business transformation requires great applications: tools that both increase productivity and protect critical data while preserving user’s privacy.

Developers can choose to use UEM/EMM software development kits (SDKs) to integrate key security and usability capabilities, like those provided by BlackBerry Dynamics. SDKs fill key gaps between native frameworks and what customers and regulated environment demand, particularly for un-managed devices. Developers can also choose, with device deployments that are managed by MDM, to leverage OS level capabilities.

These deployments are focused on native OS controls around:

• Configuring apps through managed app config
• Preventing data loss through managed open in
• Connecting apps securely through per-app VPN

Here’s where the AppConfig community comes in. Launched in February 2016, its purpose was simple: to simplify application development and deployment, and accelerate adoption. By establishing a common approach based on native operating systems, it allows development teams to create configuration policies for applications that work consistently across multiple platforms. As an EMM member of AppConfig, BlackBerry can support customers that want to deploy apps that embrace the AppConfig approach.

Open to all ISVs and EMMs and with support for both Android and iOS, AppConfig provides developers with a wealth of tools and best practices. It promotes a common approach for development, expediting the development of transformational apps and workflows. And for customers, neutrality is enforced through a governance group of eight EMM vendors.

AppConfig is just one example of how we work with developer communities and partners. We are one of the leading contributors to the mobile app developer framework Cordova (formerly PhoneGap), and recently introduced new BlackBerry Dynamics plug-ins for Cordova. We also work with Microsoft to make sure our software can be deployed on Microsoft Azure cloud in as little as 20 minutes, and that applications from Microsoft and Salesforce can interoperate well with our BlackBerry Enterprise platform.

The numbers here speak for themselves. Even though it’s been only a year since AppConfig’s launch, we’ve already seen the community grow exponentially. The number of individual developers increased from 160 to 1336, ISVs from 60 to 130, and EMM vendors from 4 to 18.

This is a clear vindication of the value of using native frameworks for development – and moreover, of a community-based approach for efficient, expedited deployment of enterprise applications.

It’s always been BlackBerry’s goal to help businesses transform themselves, and the development process is at the core of such a transformation. BlackBerry is about choice for developers and our customers. We provide the most secure platform – regardless of approach. Through AppConfig and tools like BlackBerry Dynamics, we’ve helped to ensure that developers don’t get bogged down with security or configuration. They can focus on doing what they do best – delivering great apps that transform how their organization does business.

For more information about AppConfig, visit the official site.