PalmOne Inc, the leading maker of handheld computers on Tuesday said it licensed Microsoft Corp software that enables secure delivery of corporate e-mail to portable devices.
The deal intensifies the rivalry between palmOne and Research In Motion Ltd, whose BlackBerry is one of the most popular devices used for portable e-mail.
PalmOne plans to use Microsoft's software in future versions of Treo phones that combine mobile phones and personal data organising into one unit.
Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.
By combining Microsoft's Exchange Server ActiveSync software into its devices, palmOne can eliminate the need to install additional servers - expensive powerful computers used to run many corporate functions - to shuttle data between e-mail servers and the mobile device.
The company is betting that by eliminating the need for such servers it can provide secure wireless e-mail at a lower cost.
PalmOne shares rose 32 cents in premarket INET trading to $33.25 from Monday's close at $32.93. Research In Motion has been one of the strongest performing stocks this year, more than doubling its value since the year began. Its American depository receipts closed at $76.37 in Monday's Nasdaq trading.