2/17/2009 -- Cisco Systems Inc. this week announced support for its WebEx Meeting Center Web and audio conferencing software on a number of smartphone devices, including three BlackBerry models (viz., the Bold, Curve 8900 and Storm), a quintet of Nokia offerings and the Blackjack II phone from Samsung.

Elsewhere, Cisco announced a new feature that enables hosts of Cisco's WebEx meeting applications (e.g., Meeting Center, Training Center and Event Center) to send SMS meeting invitations to potential attendees. The feature also lets recipients respond -- via SMS -- to SMS invitations, Cisco said.

Cisco's new WebEx smartphone support makes it possible for users of compliant BlackBerry, Nokia and Samsung phones to participate in audio or Web conferences (via a provider's 3G network or Wi-Fi), attend meetings and view presentations or other resources. Users can launch WebEx Meeting Center through the browser that's embedded in their smartphones to participate in audio and video conferences, Cisco said.

"Cisco is now extending the collaborative experience to leading smartphones," said Doug Dennerline, senior vice president of Cisco's Collaboration Software Group, in a statement. "The freedom that users will be able to gain from using this solution will help businesses and their employees to increase productivity because workers will be able to work wherever and whenever they wish, using their chosen device." --Stephen Swoyer