IBM Now Offering Employees Macs for the First Time

Jordan Kahn, reporting for 9to5Mac:

In a memo to employees, IBM notes that starting today all employees (not just some select developers like in the past) can pick from a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or a PC when setting up a new or refreshed workstation. The machines will include new software for security, Wi-Fi, and VPN out of the box so employees just have to connect to the internet to get started, according to the memo. IBM notes that it currently has around 15,000 Macs deployed through its BYOD program, but plans to deploy around 50,000 MacBooks by the end of the year. That, according to the memo, would make IBM the biggest “Mac shop” around, and the company said it’s sharing what it learns through the new deployment with Apple as Apple assists through its device enrollment program.

This is no surprise given last year’s enterprise partnership, and the fact that IBM got out of the PC business a decade ago. But, historically — man. This would be a hard story to get people to believe if you went back in time to, say, 1983 or so.

★ Friday, 29 May 2015