The mobile intranet and extranet solution will also provide CLSA employees with on-the-move access to applications and information held on the corporate network including directories, internal newsletters and market data.

Both employees and clients will be able to access the new services using Palm OS, Windows CE or Microsoft Windows-Powered Pocket PC devices. This will be both in real-time via a wireless connection, or offline, through synchronisation with a desktop PC.

Toby Hallwood, head of global internet services for CLSA Emerging Markets, comments: "We want our research to be something our clients can easily refer to – whether they are in a meeting or otherwise away from their PC, and this solution suits that need perfectly."

He says handheld computers are fast becoming a "must-have" business tool within the investment industry. "Delivering our content to the full spectrum of devices obviously adds huge value for our clients," he adds.

Mark Loader, AvantGo’s financial services business development manager, says the solution's offline browsing capability is ideally suited for global distribution of equity research, as it enables the user to access data and read it offline before making an investment decision.

Central administration and security are key features of AvantGo Enterprise, the latest version of which also features multiple language support (English, French and German). AvantGo claims it is the first fully integrated mobile solution to offer interactive access to Web-based applications and messaging applications – including Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes.