Analyst: BlackBerry 10 Will Not Save RIM
One analyst doesn't think BlackBerry 10 will save RIM.
RIM will today be showing its game-changing BlackBerry 10 platform, but one analyst isn't sure that the new OS will be enough to save the struggling company. Jan Dawson, Chief Telecoms Analyst at Ovum, recently said the company faces "twin demons": consumer-driven buying power and a chronic inability to appeal to mature market consumers.
"There is nothing in what we've seen so far of BB10 that suggests it will conquer the second of these demons, and the first is utterly out of RIM's control," Dawson told Benzinga in an email. "We don't expect a speedy exit from the market; with no debt, 80 million subscribers and profitability in the black in at least some recent quarters, the company can continue in this vein for years. But its glory days are past, and it is only a matter of time before it reaches a natural end."
Last month in a blog on Ovum's website, Dawson said that RIM is too focused on building the best BlackBerry device for BlackBerry users instead of developing a platform that will win the hearts of Android, Windows Phone and iPhone users. RIM's recent announcement that BlackBerry World is stocked full of movies, TV shows, music and apps seem to claim otherwise.
"The points of differentiation RIM has focused on in teasers for the new platform confirm this – better multitasking, productivity, email, contacts and calendar applications and so on, rather than a better gaming, content consumption or social networking experience," he said.
Benzinga humorously points out that the mainstream media has been quick to praise RIM for its latest BlackBerry effort while dismissing whatever Apple has released over the last six months. Apple, the golden child of Wall Street, is no longer revered. But that could change: when things looked bad for Apple, investors were all too eager to dive into RIM. Now those investors are getting cold feet, nervously waiting to see what RIM has in store with BlackBerry 10.
The big test for RIM will be the aftermath of the initial launch rush. If BlackBerry 10 devices are still selling like hotcakes after the first few months, then RIM has succeeded in securing its future.
Seriously, why do these people even get paid at all for this crap? Furthermore, why would Tom's publish this at all in the first place?
Seriously, why do these people even get paid at all for this crap? Furthermore, why would Tom's publish this at all in the first place?
RIM will be #3 ahead of Windows phone. That's my analysis.
IB
So how does this tie in? Well android is part of that total integration. And it just makes sense to go with one company from a business standpoint.
RIM on the other hand is a completely independent operating system. Who's going to bother with it at this point? If RIM had acted sooner... 2 -3 years ago... I suspect we'd see a different outcome, but now... its just too late. Add to that the total lack of real online services and I don't see many businesses wanting this.
Sigh...
From the articles and news around BB10 and the upcoming new smartphones from them, I'd say they can do this and get some marketshare back.
Interface is sleek, the phone themselves are gorgeous and they have great network quality. In this last point, from all the phones friends have had (I personally haven't owned one), the only ones with zero problems for a call or using 3G was their BBs. They're always complaining how the iPhone and Android phones lack in the most stupid part of the actual thing you buy: phone quality. They changed them because of higher specs and functionality, but miss the BB-only goodies (don't know what they mean with them).
Cheers!
BB only goodies include:
Universal inbox.
Instant email push. (android/ios have delays)
BBM.
Awesome keyboard.
Application integration between social networking, address book, calendar, universal inbox, etc...
Trackpad (yeah, others had it, but BB almost ALWAYS had it).
The consumer market could get saturated. A backlash could erupt against big/inconvenient screen sizes. Hacking/malicious code embedded in apps could sink an OS and the parent company. The patent wars could lead to dull products, sales recession.
I fixed that article title for you Kevin.
Looking at the keynote I have to say, RIM has a sh!t ton of goodies I never knew of. Really impressed.
Let's hope it's a good product for everyone. BB10 looks like a solid OS to me, but I need a hands on.
Cheers!
And then you have RIM, who's only claim to fame was push email back in early 2000. Sure they have other "features", but this is the only one anybody cared about. It was a genius idea at the time, and unfortunately for them their only idea. Apple/Google were slow to catch on to the importance of this, but once finally mastered there is literally no reason whatsoever to use a BB. So RIM is finally catching up to the friendly mobile OS that we have all come to love, about 10 years too late lol. When somebody walks into their phone store they have a series of decisions to make. Do they like the phone, and do they like the OS on it? For RIM to stand out in all of these categories and actually offer a legitimate reason for someone to choose over iphone/android is simply impossible. Nobody is going to give a damn about a BB at that point, when they have so many other and better options to choose from.