BB7 Promo in US coming!

[reden82734]

News Headlines

[adrenaline_x]

Sounds promising

[playbookster]

No i will not be upgrading to a bb7 phone unless my 9800 craps out on me. Its bb10 all the way!

[llllBULLSEYE]

This is good for customers who are due for an upgrade in the coming months.
I'm sure they are planning on slashing the high price of most devices
like the Bold which is price on the high side.
Heck a person with a Bold 9700 might be more willing to upgrade to an iphone4
at $99 dollars or free Android then a bold 9900 at $199.
Now if RIM did a big promo and started offering a Bold 9900 at $49 and torch free will make the decision easier.
Good example is a lot of my customers want the iPhone4s
but its $199 for an upgrade so they go for the free Android.

[lotuslanderz]

Originally Posted by llllBULLSEYE

This is good for customers who are due for an upgrade in the coming months.
I'm sure they are planning on slashing the high price of most devices
like the Bold which is price on the high side.
Heck a person with a Bold 9700 might be more willing to upgrade to an iphone4
at $99 dollars or free Android then a bold 9900 at $199.
Now if RIM did a big promo and started offering a Bold 9900 at $49 and torch free will make the decision easier.
Good example is a lot of my customers want the iPhone4s
but its $199 for an upgrade so they go for the free Android.

Hard to recommend an iPhone after reading this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/26/bu...in-china.html?

[louzer]

Hmmmm....

One way he plans to combat RIM's slipping market share in the U.S. is by offering customers a software upgrade for their Blackberry Playbooks, with a major push in February.

I thought that this was the plan all along. What is the major push? The Playbook sale supposedly ends on February 1 and the 'new' Playbooks aren't due out until March. Maybe there are new ads that will surface once 2.0 comes out for the Playbook - and maybe RIM is finally going to get marketing support from the carriers since the new Playbook has 3G.

Heins made it clear the company is working to protect its installed customer base and plans a major program to encourage existing Blackberry users to switch to its newest phones, which use its Blackberry 7 operating system.

He would not elaborate on details but said the promotional effort would not be undertaken at a loss to the company, and that carriers are working with it on a program that could include higher end data plans.

If the promotional effort would not be undertaken at a loss to the company, then have they gotten the carriers to agree to eat more of the cost by subsidising further? Or does this mean that the phone price will remain the same, but the carriers will include (and eat the cost of) these higher end data plans?

[lnichols]

Unfortunately the only way for RIM to have a chance to stop the bleeding in the US market is to get BB10 to market. Loyal BB users in the US have already upgraded to BB7 or are waiting now for BB10. None of the US carriers are pushing BB devices and from most reports from users here the employees in carrier operated retail store are discouraging people from buying Blackberry in favor of Android and iPhone. They will probably move some Bold 99XX now in the government because they just got OS7 and OS7.1 FIPS approved, but the previous CEO's royally screwed up when they implied BBX/BB10 would be available Q1 2012 when BB7 devices were just hitting the market. Making a huge marketing push 6 months after BB7 devices were released is just flushing money down the crapper IMHO. Save your money for BB10 and OS2. Empty gestures that are too late to make a difference won't help you out, and if your marketing campaigns are anything like what we've seen recently it will just be a joke. The only way I see a possible surge for OS7 in the US market is drastic price cut like they did with the Playbook so someone could pick up a Bold, Torch or Torch (what a marketing name CF) for cheap without burning their contract renewal. $200 for a 9900 off contract, free on contract, and bet you will sell some units. I love my 9900 and don't regret paying $229 on contract for it one bit, but I'm simply acknowledging the facts on the ground that it is going to take much more than simple commercials to move BB7 devices now in the US.

[scalemaster34]

Originally Posted by llllBULLSEYE

This is good for customers who are due for an upgrade in the coming months.
I'm sure they are planning on slashing the high price of most devices
like the Bold which is price on the high side.
Heck a person with a Bold 9700 might be more willing to upgrade to an iphone4
at $99 dollars or free Android then a bold 9900 at $199.
Now if RIM did a big promo and started offering a Bold 9900 at $49 and torch free will make the decision easier.
Good example is a lot of my customers want the iPhone4s
but its $199 for an upgrade so they go for the free Android.

Price is very important, and RIM has almost priced themselves out of the market...
Think the main reason the STORM was such a hot seller was that Android had not really taken off yet and if you were on Verizon the STORM was pretty much the only choice in a touch Screen. But the key was the fact that for much of the early months it was BOGO.

But if Verizon had all the Android device they do today, some of which are Free on contract... don't think RIM would have sold nearly as many STORMS. (Which in the long run might have been better for them)

Of course RIM has the Curve and it is designed for the lower end of the price range... but to be honest a year old DROID with a larger screen and priced cheaper, looks much better to a consumer that doesn't care about an OS.

[ryansmithknowsbest]

they need to workin ion the er markiting in the us market. ... its really horribke how many oople bash rim ehre in the states. . . i went to gbbuyt a fpphone from radioshack and the people would nt stop electring meon not to but it from here

[InnerChild]

A real boost would be realized if they allowed all the BB7 users early upgrades when the BB10 phones are released since most of us will only be about a year into our contracts. They really need to get them out there in the hands of customers who can help promote them.

[Tank1978]

Originally Posted by reden82734

News Headlines

I mentioned offering a deal to current bb users on older os' its a brilliant olan and I am vlad he has thought about this...

[italianemperor]

I am out of contract and still on a storm 2. What is the reason to lock into a 2 year contract at this point? I would think quite a few people are in the same boat I am in. The only way I would buy a BB7 device is if they offered a one year contract or an upgrade option when BB10 comes out.

[dblcup1]

Agreed. I'm dying to upgrade from my current 9650 Bold to the 9930, but why would I spend $229 to lock into a two year contract now? If BB10 is basically right around the corner, RIM is pretty much forcing me to stick with my extremely outdated technology until late this year. What a cluster!! C'mon RIM, I'm pulling for you, but give me something (eg free upgrade to BB10 when released)for all the pain and patience!!

[BergerKing]

Bay Ismoyo | AFP | Getty Images
RIM's new CEO Thorsten Heins is sticking by his statement that RIM does not need to make any "drastic changes" to the company and it’s not a “turnaround” play, but he acknowledges the company is suffering in the US market.

"It hurts. It hurts me to see us losing market share in the U.S. There was a paradigm shift, and we did not shift with it..." Heins said. "I know we've made mistakes, and I know I'm in for a fight."

Heins was speaking Thursday to CNBC reporters and producers in an off-air discussion. He appeared on CNBC earlier in the week, shortly after he was named CEO.

With RIM [RIMM 16.70 0.07 (+0.42%) ] stock down about 75 percent since early 2011, Heins certainly is in for a fight. In response to a question, he said that there’s no truth to takeover rumors that have been swirling around the company’s stock.

One way he plans to combat RIM's slipping market share in the U.S. is by offering customers a software upgrade for their Blackberry Playbooks, with a major push in February.


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“We want to stop the bleeding,” he said. Heins emphasized RIM’s international growth, and noted the company has taken its subscriber base from 50 million to 75 million in a year.

Heins made it clear the company is working to protect its installed customer base and plans a major program to encourage existing Blackberry users to switch to its newest phones, which use its Blackberry 7 operating system.

He would not elaborate on details but said the promotional effort would not be undertaken at a loss to the company, and that carriers are working with it on a program that could include higher end data plans.

The campaign to upgrade the embedded customer base also comes months ahead of the company’s next Blackberry offering, the Blackberry 10 operating system, expected by the end of the year.

A large amount of the U.S. market is still using earlier versions of the Blackberry operating system that does not have the features in Blackberry 7, Heins said. Heins said 7 has an improved browser and a HD screen, among other enhancements.



By allowing users to upgrade to the latest Blackberry systems, users will be reintroduced to the efficiency of the device, he said.

“Blackberry is all about efficiency. We know how to set ourselves apart,” Heins said.

New RIM products will also help the company reshape its image in the U.S. market, Heins said.

© 2012 CNBC.com

Text of the story. I'm looking to upgrading to 7, and will worry about X when it gets here. Since the first device is to be a full-touch, I'd probably be waiting a little longer, anyway, and by the time we know how it works out, timing oughta be spot-on, at least for us.

[louzer]

There are many people who are eligible for a new phone discount now or sometime soon. These people are looking at the OS7 phones and are comparing their current experience vs their perceived experience with an OS7 device. These same people also know that BB10 phones are 6 to 8 months off.

If these people see fit to upgrade right now, they'll have to wait around 14 months after the BB10 phones come out in order to upgrade. I'd have to assume that when BB10 phone(s) come out, the price of the Bold, Torches, and curves will have to come down. The BB10 devices will need to be competitively priced with phones like the Galaxy Nexus or the iPhone which leaves little room with the current BB pricing.

I think the promo should be an offer from RIM to commit to subsidising anyone who purchases a Bold or one of the Torches now in order for them to upgrade to the London (or whatever) when that comes out. Or they could offer a deep discount on the non-contract price right now so that people can be on BB7 now and still have their carrier discount once BB10 comes out.