Dow Jones has allowed its employees to use an iPhone to access corporate e-mail, according to Eric Savitz at Barron's on Wednesday. However, the RIM BlackBerry remains the "Dow Jones standard." Mr. Savitz suggested this may be the route many companies go: initial approval but no formal support.

According to Mr. Savitz, his company's Global Technology Services group is evaluating the iPhone, given its new security features for the enterprise.

Mr. Savitz cited the official memo:

Global Technology Services will provide support for the use of Microsoft?s ActiveSync technology as a mobile email solution for handheld devices. Going forward, you will be able to use ActiveSync to access your corporate Exchange e-mail, calendar, and contacts from your personal iPhone, Treo, or Windows Mobile devices (version 5 or higher). Support will be limited to delivery of corporate email to your device only; all other support including assistance with your device, service plan, and connectivity must be directed to your service provider.

So while the user must arrange for their own purchase and support, at least the door is open for e-mail. So far, Mr. Savitz hasn't convinced his support people to let him connect his new iPhone 3G to the Exchange server, noting that the support group is a bit on the conservative side.

Further decisions are pending, he noted.