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Tag: rim

  • RIM to license its technology out to other hardware manufacturers?

    Research in Motion is thinking ahead, while the Blackberry 10 is about to hit the market. RIM CEO Thorsten Heins told Die Welt that they are examining the possibility of selling their hardware to other hardware manufacturers in the future. This means that they could license their technologies and provide them to others, leaving behind their exclusivity, which had its advantages, but also its disadvantages.

    More specifically, he mentioned:

    "There are several options, including the sale of the hardware production is as much as licensing our software. But there is no reason for us to decide in hectic. It is important first of all, BlackBerry 10 successfully putting them on the market. Then we shall see."

    Altough it is still early to predict the future of RIM, it could be a good choice, which could significantly expand their audience. Especially now with the release of Blackberry 10 that they have put all their hopes on, it could be a wise move indeed for such a thought.

    For the time being they are focusing on the promotion of BB10, enlarging its hype and raising the anticipation level. For example, RIM's stock is following the general hype that favors RIM, jumping more than 10% the last week. And BB10 has not even launched to justify the general optimism.

    If it is a success, as they wish, why not plan for bigger things?

  • RIM announces BlackBerry Curve 9315

    RIM and T-Mobile have announced the release of BlackBerry Curve 9315, a brand new smartphone, which is ideal for those that don't spend a fortune for a phone, but are still looking for a decent choice.

    BlackBerry Curve 9315 is the next generation of Curve Blackberries, featuring a QWERTY keyboard once again, a 320×240 screen, a 512MB RAM, a 3.2MP camera and a 3G connectivity. It runs on BlackBerry 7.1 operating system and is considered a good choice for those that need an easy-to-use smartphone. What's more, it supports micro SD cards up to 32GB, it has a built-in FM radio and a built-in Wi-Fi connectivity that allows you to communicate with your friends instantly. There is also a button for BlackBerry Messenger and Facebook and Twitter are already preloaded, if you are the social type.

    According to Ricard Piasentin, managing director for RIM USA:

    "The Curve 9315 is designed to make it incredibly easy to stay connected with friends, family and coworkers and will be popular with customers upgrading to a smartphone for the first time, as well as existing Curve customers looking for a step up in speed and functionality."

    It is also characterized as a "great device to combine business and personal use" and also "T-Mobile's most affordable Blackberry smartphone", since it will cost $49.99 upfront and $10 per month on a 20-month plan.

    If you are excited about it, pre-sale starts on January 16 and the official sale is on January 23. It seems like a decent choice if you are a fan of the classic Blackberry smartphones. However, if you are looking for the next generation of Blackberries running on BB10, maybe you have to wait a litte bit more before purchasing your next smartphone.

  • BlackBerry 10 to be introduced on January 30

    After all the speculation regarding the release of the Blackberry 10, RIM finally made an official announcement, informing us that they will introduce BlackBerry 10 on January 30.

    Although we do not know any details regarding the phones that will be presented, we do know that the two new smartphones will be faster, with a great range of choice among applications and will have touchscreens. Blackberries might have been popular about their QWERTY keyboards, but RIM seems to understand that touchscreen is preferred lately in the mobile industry and that's why their first smartphones will follow the latest trends. However, if you are a fan of the classic Blackberry smartphone, you won't be disappointed. You will just have to wait  little bit more for the next line of Blackberries.

    According to RIM, they will present both the new phones and their updated operating system, in multiple countries simultaneously on January 30, hoping that the delays have made them even more competitive.

    According to Thorsten Heins, the president and CEO of Research in Motion:

    “Our team has been working tirelessly to bring our customers innovative features combined with a best in class browser, a rich application ecosystem, and cutting-edge multimedia capabilities. All of this will be integrated into a user experience – the BlackBerry Flow – that is unlike any smartphone on the market today,”

    What's more, RIM is already trying their new products with many carriers around the world and they already have obtained a  U.S. government certification, which means that they will be ready to launch their brand new smartphones in USA.

    As it seems, RIM has finally managed to create a calendar with everything that we are expecting from Blackberry 10 the following months. We might not know whether the anticipation will be satisfied, but RIM surely needs it in order to survive in the mobile industry.

  • RIM anticipates for the Blackberry 10

    RIM seems to be very excited about the forthcoming release of the Blackberry 10 and it decided to present the phone to developers, by exhibiting some Dev Alpha devices to a series of "Blackberry Jam" events. It is a way to get the first impressions on Blackberry 10, until its final release for consumers during the first months of 2013.

    According to the CEO of RIM, Thorsten Heins:

    “With BB10 we’re at the start of a new era of mobile computing,”

    “BB10 introduces a shift to true mobile computing, and that is why we’ve built a whole new platform, a new architecture, from the ground up."

    Blackberry 10 is expected to have many new features, while surprises are not denied. From what we already know, we are expecting an update on Blackberry Messenger (BBM), which is going to have a better look that will allow an easier conversation. The home screen is also expected to change, with RIM naming it "Blackberry Flow" and allowing the user to browse the pages with the apps. The inbox is also going to change, integrating BBM, text messages and any update from social networks. From now on, it will be known as "Blackberry Hub" and it will be one of your most frequent visits. What's more, the camera will be more functional, while there will also be active frames, which remind us of the live tiles on the Windows Phone.

    All these features indicate that RIM is trying hard to prove that they are still in the game and they seem to be aware of what the consumers want lately. Will Blackberry 10 be their rebound to the smartphone market? We just have to wait a few months to answer that question.

  • RIM presents BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10

    RIM has announced their plans about BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, hoping that businessmen will stick to Blackberries and buy their new BB10 devices.

    Research in Motion does not seem to lose hope, despite the fall in Blackberry's sales the last years. Although iOS and Android have conquered the market, RIM knows that they still have part of the businessmen on their side. That's why they announced BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, which simplifies any service that entrepreneurs might need.

    According to RIM:

    "BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 represents a consolidation of our enterprise mobility management (EMM) product portfolio, which includes our mobile device management (MDM), security, infrastructure, and app management products. It will prepare your organization for the future of mobile diversity, as well as integrate with your existing BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) deployment. From a single unified web-based console, BES 10 will manage the following devices:

    – BlackBerry 7 OS and prior smartphones
    – BlackBerry 10 devices
    – BlackBerry PlayBook tablets
    – iOS and Android™ smartphones and tablets

    BES 10 will be the ultimate management solution for all BlackBerry platform devices, as well as iOS and Android devices. BES 10 will launch with the first BlackBerry 10 devices in Q1 of calendar year 2013. "

    As it seems, RIM understands that their focus should be on enterprise customers and they decided to entice them with a great idea.

    "RIM remains committed to our enterprise customers by providing advanced, innovative, and flexible options for a straight-forward migration to BlackBerry 10 smartphones, as well as cross-platform management of your mobile device deployment."

    We just have to see whether this could boost their sales.

  • RIM considered switching to Android OS

    Research in Motion, Blackberry's company, is trying to find a way to recover and one of their thoughts was to turn into Android.

    Blackberry used to be a very popular smartphone, but Apple's domination has significantly affected their sales. The popularity of iOS and Android did not leave any space for other operating systems. Thus, according to RIM CEO, Thorsten Heins and his recent interview to the Guardian, RIM did consider the prospect of using Android on their future smartphones. It could be a way to take advantage of Android's popularity and functionality, while combining it with Blackberry's experience in the smartphone market. However, they ultimately rejected the idea.

    “We took the conscious decision not to go Android. If you look at other suppliers’ ability to differentiate, there’s very little wiggle room. We looked at it seriously – but if you understand what the promise of BlackBerry is to its user base it’s all about getting stuff done. Games, media, we have to be good at it but we have to support those guys who are ahead of the game. Very little time to consume and enjoy content – if you stay true to that purpose you have to build on that basis. And if we want to serve that segment we can’t do it on a me-too approach.”

    Blackberry is mostly used for business reasons and this led RIM to stick to the Blackberry OS and the creation of the BB10, which will be perfect for multitasking. It is expected to arrive with the new smartphones in January and they have to prove that they do not need Android or any other operating system.

    Did they make the right choice? Time will tell. 

  • Nielsen: Android Leads the Market Share in USA

    Android operating system seems to win the battle over iOS, at least in the American market share. At least, that's what a latest research says.

    According to Nielsen's research, 51.8 % of US users that own a smartphone are choosing Android as their operating system. Apple comes second with the 34.3% of the market share, while RIM by Blackberry is third with 8.1% of the market share. Although the figures might be surprising for some of you, in fact they shouldn't be.

    We all know that iPhones dominate in the industry, but we also know that Android is a big competitor. Although their constant battle does not always have a clear winner, in this case the numbers can be justified by the fact that Android is used by many smartphone brands. Also, the fact that Android smartphones are cheaper, at least statistically, than the iPhones, makes users prefer the cost-effective choice. Android's percentage of market share consists of Samsung, HTC, Motorola and other smartphones.

    On the contrary, when we are referring to iOS, we know that it's only iPhone that includes the specific operating system. Despite its higher price, iPhone is still in high esteem and that's why the stand-alone percentage of 34% should not be underestimated.

    After all, times are changing and we are not sure whether the numbers will be the same by the end of the year. We might not be able to predict the winner, and whether it will be a clear victory, but we can tell that the release of Apple's new iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy S III will affect the current graph.

  • BlackBerry Close to an End, RIM Prepares New Layoffs

    BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) has announced it aims to reduce operating costs by one billion dollars per year, a plan that includes significant layoffs.

    RIM’s U.S. sales declined dramatically due to the fierce competition represented by the Apple's iPhone and Google’s Android OS, which is why RIM will terminate the contract with Celestica – phone parts manufacturer.

    Celestica is a Canadian company that provides parts and assembles terminals for several companies, including RIM. The company recently announced that it will stop producing parts for the BlackBerry manufacturer and for this reason it expects a loss of $35 billion.

    BlackBerry, along with Nokia, are the companies that have lost the battle against Apple. RIM recorded losses of $125 million in the first quarter of the year, while in Q1 2011 had a profit of $1 billion. Revenues decreased from $ 5.2 billion to about $4.2 billion and shares value decreased by 80% in one year. In comparison, Apple has announced for 2011 a net profit of $ 13.06 billion, mainly supported by the sales of iPhones and iPads, revenues reaching a record of $46.33 billion.

    RIM also fired 35% of its employees last year, thinking that this would be the right solution, but unfortunately the collapse continued.

    Besides Celestica, RIM will also terminate the contracts with other two companies, Flextonics International Ltd and Jabil Circuit Inc.

    “RIM has committed to achieve significant efficiencies and reducing operating costs during this fiscal year. Reducing the number of employees is part of this initiative,” said the company spokesman, Tenille Kennedy.

    RIM's reorganization process could affect between 2,000 and 3,000 jobs, as estimated by analysts at Northern Securities Toronto, under the premise that 30% of the announced cost reductions will be achieved by measures of employment and human resources. Also, Wall Street Journal, citing sources close to the company, claims that RIM fires for weeks groups of at least 10 employees.

    Canadian company plans to launch this year a new range of smartphones based on the BlackBerry 10 OS, through which hopes to regain market share.

  • Blackberry Maker Says It Plans to Release New Model First Before Disclosing Financial Figures

    RIM, the maker of the popular BlackBerry smartphone today said it was postponing its earlier scheduled disclosure of the latest company financial figures, preferring to go ahead first with the release of its awaited new BlackBerry 10 models.

    In a report by Reuters, BlackBerry maker Research In Motion said it was delaying its scheduled disclosure of financial figures to analysts set for May this year, instead setting the business meeting for later in 2012. RIM had typically released its financial report for analysts during the Blackberry World conference, usually held in the summer.

    RIM spokeswoman Tenille Kennedy told Reuters the company is deciding to focus instead on its worldwide customers, developers and partners as the Canada-based technology firm goes into the final stages of the impending public release of its new generation of smartphones to be led by the popular BlackBerry.

    Kennedy confirmed that the company is planning to set up a session separate from the product-oriented BlackBerry World conference in May that would target the interests of investors looking to RIM as an alternative investment focal point, at a point level with such smartphone leaders as Apple, Samsung, Nokia and LG. 

    Research In Motion had earlier announced its impending release of the new BlackBerry 10 editions which will use the same operating system of the company’s PlayBook tablet.  The PlayBook itself has not made a successful sales impact on the strictly competitive tablet market, led by Apple’s top selling iPads.

    The new RIM schedule, both for the postponement of the public release of its financial position as well as the marketing of the BlackBerry 10 models, has been interpreted by industry observers as the firm’s redoubling of efforts to come out with a competitive smartphone that would make use of powerful chipsets it said were set for delivery to its factories sometime early this year.

  • RIM Cuts Off Prices, Likely to Name Barbara Stymiest as Chairman

    We have been talking lately about the problems faced by the Canadian company Research in Motion and here’s that the first days of 2012 are also bringing the first strategy changes: changes in management board as well as in marketing section.

    Thus, after the pressures exerted by an important group of shareholders of the company, it seems that both Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie – the two co-founders of RIM – will lose their executive functions. The two co-CEO of the company will most likely be replaced by Barbara Stymiest, director recruited by the company in 2007, which is believed to have the necessary qualities to recover the Canadian company.

    Until then, a committee composed of seven directors in charge at the company (including Ms. Stymiest) examined the decision-making structure and the advantages or disadvantages that would be in case of keeping the couple Lazaridis – Balsillie at the helm of RIM.

    The second measure taken by RIM officials aims at boosting sales on tablet segment, where the results were far below expectations. Under these conditions, the price of all Playbook tablets (regardless of the storage capacity offered) remained unsold was reduced to $299 – until February 4 or until stocks run out.

    The reduction is significant, given that one 64GB tablet was initially costing $700, the version with 32 GB – $ 599 and the 16GB – $499. Despite the fact that in these conditions, the company's profits will be almost zero, RIM could this way get rid of significant stocks of unsold products.

    As we have already mentioned, several manufacturers have shown their interest in taking over Research in Motion, but the company said it will try to resolve their problems on their own first.