Apple’s next major operating system update launch date is to be confirmed today, with the public beta available now. iOS 9 is expected to launch later this month to coincide with the new iPhone 6S or iPhone 7, but will also be rolling out to many older versions of iPhone, iPad and even iPad touch.
Smarter Siri and Apple Pay for UK users are just some of the improvements Apple fans can expect, but what are some of the features that will benefit enterprise mobile apps?
Mobile management specialist MobileIron has released its guide to the platform, with whitepaper, infographic and instructions aimed at helping enterprises understand what the new operating software will mean for their operations.
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‘Last year, Apple said that iOS 8 was the biggest release for developers since the introduction of the App Store,’ said Sean Ginevan, MobileIron senior director of Strategy. ‘iOS 9 will make this new class of iOS 8-enabled apps easier for enterprise customers to deploy and secure. Apple is leveraging its ecosystem to help enterprises to scale mobility through apps like never before.’
The benefits fall into three categories:
Enhanced security
For supervised devices, an EMM can push apps to the device without enabling the Apple App Store.
Through an EMM, IT can now prevent managed apps from sharing information through AirDrop, such as mail attachments from managed email accounts.
iOS 9 now includes support for streaming technologies through per-app VPN.
Faster deployment
New in iOS 9, device-based licensing allows IT to assign apps to devices instead of users, which eliminates the Apple ID requirement.
Easily enroll hundreds or thousands of supervised devices in the EMM server with just a few clicks using DEP and Apple Configurator 2.
Transition a user-installed app into a managed app on managed devices without losing any data.
Improved productivity
Now you can circle a typo, add your signature to a contract, cross out a paragraph and make other changes right at the moment of sending an attachment.
Notes has transformed from a text-based app into a feature-rich, note-taking app that supports a checklist of to-do’s, photos, maps, Web links and more.
iOS 9 enhancements make the iPad a robust enterprise device with Slider Over, Split View and Picture in Picture.
> See also: Should UK banks be sweating about the arrival of Apple Pay?
