Tag Archive: RIM
What If Microsoft Had Bought BlackBerry In 2009 Instead?
Sep. 3, ‘13: If Steve Ballmer had taken my advice four years ago, would he be better off today? The big tech story this week — until another iPhone part leaks, that is — will be Microsoft’s $7+ billion acquisition of Nokia’s smartphone … Continue reading →
Microsoft’s Mobile Comeback Isn’t Happening
Apr. 5, ‘13: We’re only talking about the world’s biggest software company and the future of computers. So far, it’s still basically irrelevant. To Microsoft’s credit, Windows 8 and Windows Phone seem like solid products. There are some Windows features I’d like to … Continue reading →
Just In Case You Forgot How Far RIM Has Fallen
Sep. 25, ‘12: “We have a clear shot at being the number three platform on the market. We’re not just another open platform on the market, we are BlackBerry.” — RIM CEO Thorsten Heins, via The Verge. Heins is right that there isn’t fierce … Continue reading →
RIM’s plunge in profitability is just insane
Jul. 2, ‘12: Horace Dediu gives RIM the Asymco treatment and, whoa, check out the last chart on operating margins. One lesson here, which we’re learning over and over, is just how quickly things can change in the mobile industry. When your customers … Continue reading →
‘The end of RIM as we know it’
Mar. 29, ‘12: A real stinker from RIM this past quarter: Sales down 25% year-over-year while Apple’s iPhone revenue more than doubled. I’ve updated my 10-year chart on RIM’s sales for ReadWriteWeb. Fiscal 2012 was its first year of declining revenue ever, and … Continue reading →
RIM can’t save itself
Jan. 23, ‘12: New Research In Motion CEO Thorsten Heins — previously a co-COO at the BlackBerry maker, in charge of product and sales — is too little, too late. Unless Heins is secretly a rare, freakish visionary genius whose creativity has been stifled … Continue reading →
The big problem with buying RIM is that there isn’t only one big problem
Dec. 21, ‘11: As RIM’s sales sputter and its market value falls, potential buyers are starting to sniff around. Reuters reports that Amazon took a look this past summer. The WSJ reports that Microsoft and Nokia have considered a joint bid for RIM. … Continue reading →
RIM’s rise and decline: A 10-year view
Dec. 20, ‘11: BlackBerry maker Research In Motion is a classic example of a company that had one great idea, grew huge because of it, but couldn’t save itself as the industry moved on. And now for the first time ever, RIM’s sales … Continue reading →
RIM’s unsold PlayBook inventory: Probably 1+ million units
Dec. 2, ‘11: Among other bad news, BlackBerry maker RIM announced today that it would take a $485 million write-down for its November quarter because it has too many unsold PlayBook tablets in inventory. How many? Probably about 1.4 million, Morgan Stanley analyst … Continue reading →
Smart! RIM will help enterprise customers manage their iPhones and Androids, too
Nov. 29, ‘11: Here’s RIM’s press release, announcing a new “BlackBerry Mobile Fusion” service. This seems to be RIM’s admission that it’s losing enterprise phone sales to the iPhone and Android — an undeniable truth. (Especially when it comes to employee-owned devices being … Continue reading →