An Uncertain Future for Blackberry

The Canadian-based company Research In Motion (RIM) is the manufacturer of the famous Blackberry-brand smartphone.  If you have never used a Blackberry, think of it as a PDA and phone all rolled into one.  But unlike other devices that send email, sync calendar entries, and send text messages, the data that is transmitted can be secured through what is called a Blackberry Enterprise Server.  This is why businesses love them.  Information that is sent via Blackberry is typically more reliable and secure than information sent on other devices.  In addition, the data can be broken down into smaller packages, thus reducing bandwidth and the need for large amounts of storage on the devices themselves.  Companies can also place restrictions on the phones that block access from unauthorized users and don't allow for third party application downloads.  When smartphones came down in price around 2006 and mobile internet speeds increased, the phone made famous in the business world became more mainstream.  It pioneered entry into the smartphone market along with Palm and Windows Mobile.  People liked Blackberry primarily for its ease of use, but also, unknowingly for the same reasons it became popular in the business world.

Then came the iPhone.  RIM's leadership labeled the device "badly flawed," believing consumers wanted "great battery life, great security, great mail handling, minimal network use, and a great keyboard experience." (reference 1) It turned out that a fast operating system, full HTML browser, and lots of apps ruled the day.  To counteract the success of the Apple device, RIM launched the Blackberry Storm, the first touchscreen Blackberry with a similar look and feel to its new rival, in the Fall of 2008.  The Storm was hugely successful for RIM in spite of the phone's flaws.  Its share of the market grew substantially by offering its phones on multiple carriers around the world, and having models in all shapes, sizes and colors.

Fast forward to 2011.  This article presents some of the opportunities and challenges for RIM in the next few years.   Blackberry still has a substantial share of the consumer and business smartphone market.  But Apple and Google are dominating with their super fast devices that pack tons of applications with similar PDA functionality as their predecessor.

Some of the opportunities for Blackberry:

1. Make the new Playbook tablet extremely useful for business users and consumers.
2. Introduce a new phone in 2011 packed with better specs.
3. Give app developers a reason to create new apps for the new devices.

Reference 1: "Special Report: A Playbook for Fighting Apple and Google" by Alistair Sharp http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/15/us-rim-specialreport-idUSTRE72E3FZ20110315?pageNumber=1