Nov 17 2012
RIM: Hanging in the Balance of the Blackberry 10 Release
In response to Kevin Yu’s blog entitled RIM: Comeback??
It’s hard to argue against the notion that RIM’s fate rests in the hands of the new Blackberry 10, which is expected to be released in early 2013. As shown in the video below (also on showcased in Kevin’s post), the introduction of the new operating system, “Blackberry Flow”, provides an example of a feature that sets it apart from previous models. In my opinion, it seems like many of its features imitate the systems in which Apple and Android phones have been using for years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmND2-fkUD0&feature=player_embedded
Nonetheless, as Kevin notes, RIM shares rose a dramatic $0.80 earlier this month – its highest closing price in more than a full quarter. Whether this is a viable prediction of what to expect in the near future, however, is debatable. Perhaps, as Kris Thompson mentions in the linked article, the share price was simply bid up by investors seeking capital gains by buying the stock prior to commercial availability.
While it seems close-minded to say that RIM doesn’t have a shot at recovering, I believe it’s chances are slim. At least from the sneak peak in the video, it appears that Blackberry software is merely trying to catch up to its competitors in many facets, while its competitors continue to push new boundaries. Moreover, some of the features that made Blackberry successful in the past, including its encryption software and Blackberry Messenger, have been successfully duplicated by both Apple and Samsung. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see whether or not the Blackberry 10 will be RIM’s saving grace.