Why Microsoft's Capptain acquisition could improve Dynamics ERP and CRM mobility

Lost somewhat in other hubbub last week was Microsoft's acquisition of Capptain, a response marketing solution provider with tools to help mobile and web apps analyze user behavior, and respond by pushing targeted messages, announcements, information, or offers.

"Capptain will bring a vital new element to our end-to-end story for mobile app development - real-time user and push analytics," wrote Microsoft's Omar Kahn in a blog post announcing the acquisition. "With Capptain's solution, organizations can analyze customer and employee behavior in real-time, and respond by pushing targeted messages, announcements, information or offers."

Based on the company's own description of the offering, Capptain has been designed largely as a marketing-based tool. As a platform play for the enterprise, does Capptain have the potential to help Microsoft connect core enterprise systems like ERP and CRM plug into an age of smarter app experiences?

While there's no indication that Dynamics ERP or CRM factored into this acquisition, the possibility of a mobile push/analytics engine with Azure-scale support and Microsoft R&D backing is intriguing. And for Microsoft partners who already embrace mobile technology as the future of enterprise computing, the need for such a tool set is clear.

Mobile apps in the B2C space commonly analyze user data and trigger push notifications based on those analytics. They dig into user behavior on a micro and macro level and tailor updates appropriately, whether through changes to the core application, user alerts, targeted special offers, or ads. Measurement of the response to those pushed changes is then analyzed further, informing future push ...