All roads seem to lead to Microsoft, even for Apple. The Cupertino-based company's iPhone, scheduled for availability on June 29, in just two days, will deliver not only "8 hours of talk time, 6 hours of Internet use, 7 hours of video playback or 24 hours of audio playback" and "up to 250 hours-more than 10 days-of standby time," as Apple revealed in a recent press release, but also compatibility with Microsoft Exchange 2003 and 2007. According to Mary Jo Foley, Apple is scheduled to announce the licensing of the Exchange ActiveSync protocol before the iPhone will be made commercially available.

"Get your work done nearly anytime, anywhere, with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync-compatible devices. When you use the Microsoft Windows Mobile-based devices or Exchange ActiveSync-enabled mobile devices that are available through Microsoft partners, it's easy to gain mobile access to Exchange Server for e-mail messages, voice mail, fax messages, schedules, contact information, and tasks lists," Microsoft revealed.

Via ActiveSync, mobile device users will be able to access a variety of Exchange Server data including e-mail messages, schedules, contacts, tasks lists. The protocol is already supported by a range of Windows Mobile-based devices and Exchange ActiveSync-enabled devices, and it is simply natural for Apple to support it too with the iPhone. With such a move, Apple will offer similar capabilities with mobile phone manufacturers including Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericsson. However, for Microsoft, licensing ActiveSync is nothing new, and the Redmond company would certainly welcome another phone maker with Exchange compatibility even if we are talking about Apple.

"Microsoft offers a commercially reasonable, nonexclusive license so that other companies can use the Live Communications Server 2005 protocol extensions in their own products and services. In some cases, companies may wish to negotiate broader or narrower rights than the standard Microsoft license for the LCS 2005 protocol extensions. Our terms are flexible, and can be modified to reflect cross-licensing, scope, and other considerations," Microsoft stated.