For iOS developers, enterprise is the place to be

I normally loathe writing about the corporate world, but seeing as this is a column focused on the business of apps, I figured I would make an exception.

While it's great to talk about the latest mobile game or local search app, the real money may be made in the enterprise arena. That's particularly the case with Apple and iOS.

With Research In Motion and its BlackBerry line reeling, there's a wide opening for another smartphone operating system to take over as the de facto corporate standard. Several Android players have attempted to fill that gap, notably Motorola Mobility, but it looks like Apple and its iPhone are gaining a solid footing in that area -- even if Apple is barely trying.

In a recent survey of more than 3,600 developers taken by mobile development platform Appcelerator, 53 percent responded that iOS was the best positioned to win in the business world in the long term. In comparison, only 38 percent said Android would come out on top. Lagging behind with paltry numbers were BlackBerry and Windows Phone, although some respondents were cautiously optimistic for Microsoft.

While Apple remains focused largely on the consumer, it has steadily increased its enterprise and government rhetoric, with executives spending a lot of time on the education area. On Friday, meanwhile, security company ... [Read more]