[rherfurth]

It looks like the death walk has begun, and the last efforts of a poor BB management team is trying everything in their power to keep the sinking boat from going down.

Very trollish start? Well then let me give my quick background. 1) Former BB employee, that left on my own merits, not laid off, job security key reason and three weeks later BB began their lay-offs, so more so knowing the right people and knowing what was coming... 2) owner of a red Z10... 3) monthly lunches with friends down the street from I work now, from BB HQ, and dear friends who I grew up as kids here in KW still working there, still carrying the 'badge'. It's sad to see where BB has gone, and it's like cheering all these years for the Toronto Maple Leafs...finally they made the playoffs, so the end of the world must be near if they arrive in the Cup finals...

It yakes good management and that's where I want to start.

1) Why was Thorsten brought into RIM? Why would someone get a $50 million golden parachute to run a company into the ground? Wouldn't one really be asking, why doesn't he quit or turn down the money? $50 million? When someone fails, they don't get money, if they are successful, they get rewarded. What is the boards true motives? Going private? Possibly...cash out?

2) Put out or shut up - look at all the cool things BB10 + QNX COULD do is the constant thing I see, but none of it actually comes to market. Then you have Google, that barely pipes a word and does things better. BB 10.2 is LONG over due unfortunately...

At the end of the day, there is a LOT untapped resource both hardware and OS that BB offers it's consumers. Lack of developer support both within BB and third party make it appear useless. I grabbed a Nexus 7 after selling my Playbooks, and to be honest it's not MUCH more advanced by way of what you get between devices, it's the execution. This is where Blackberry lacks...everything I can do with my Nexus 7 (and no doubt my future Nexus '5') is in my Z10. Without developing 'an app for that' well what can I do?

3) Apps? Let's be honest, Saunders failed...how can you fix this?
-> ANDROID APP PLAYER -> 4.3 latest version until later this month when KitKat is released -> consumer apps
->-> direct from Google Play, shut down BB World or reserve it for below...licensing issue using Google Play? Figure it out...
-> BB Native -> enterprise apps

To add -> how much is it for an app on Google Play, and the same title on BB World. I enjoy the FREE apps a lot more then I enjoy paying for them on BB World. Sorry but it's true...

4) Licensing? - someone needs to realize, Blackberry is not Apple. They need to focus on what they can do for the consumer.
Samsung + BB would be a great idea without a doubt, but required?

QNX + BB OS is a requirement + utilize Android Player, give the kids their toys, give the adults their native, BB Balance...
BES 10 has power -> a lot of corporations are turning to Apple and Google solutions, along with third party developers of the respective OS's. Today BES is around, but looking at where I and no doubt if you work at a corporation and review corporate strategy, BES 10 won't have a long shelf life if you don't change people's prospectives of Blackberry as a whole. This strategy worked INCREDIBLE for Apple, and now suddenly their devices are becoming corporate supplied devices...the bleeding will only continue...
BBM is going to go the way of the dingo, don't put all your eggs in one bucket
Hardware do you need Samsung? As a partner yes which no doubt they are already utilizing parts, Samsung doesn't build their own phones, China does...they DESIGN their own phones which BB already does a fine job at already.

Z30 = Android fighter
Z10 = iPhone fighter
Q10 = BB customer loyalty
Q5 = the Curve is what destroyed BB in North America, enough said...you got what you paid for, from initial reaction of friends, the Q5 is NOT a Curve, it is actually worth being in the line-up, not a cheap alternative

In closing, there isn't a whole lot that differentiates BB 10 vs the competitors. Now that I have been slowly migrating to Android, I can see it. I still have my red Z10, but the similarities are there, the execution is a bit different, but I'm sure sitting in a court room for 'copyright infringement' is also frowned upon. The device needs to be more fully utilized and cost savings need to be considered for success.

Phase one is troublesome over the past year, but recovery is going to be even more difficult now. Hopefully BB can turn their death walk into the gallows where Palm had visited

[pkcable]

Certainly food for thought! Thanks for posting!

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

I agree that BB10 had a lot of potential and that it is a shame that it took soo long to get it release and that even then it wasn't finished. Would have been nice to see what would have happened if things had been done differently... but they weren't and most of the blame does fall on TH shoulders at this point.

[Ishutter2]

+100%. Thanks for the candid view. You addressed a lot of the valid points. I love my BlackBerry but let's get real.

Posted via BB Z10

[njblackberry]

Thank you for an obviously personal and thoughtful note. I am sure many will disagree with you. One line jumped out at me..

In closing, there isn't a whole lot that differentiates BB 10 vs the competitors.

That is something that hasn't been discussed much. When trying to climb back into the game, you need something that appears to be better than your competition...

[heymaggie]

In closing, there isn't a whole lot that differentiates BB 10 vs the competitors.

Agree that this is the key. One could easily say the same for BBM and BES. The only thing that I see that Blackberry clearly leads the mobile industry in is hardware keyboards. I don't know enough about security to debate the merits, however, I mostly see security touted by Blackberry itself.

[Nine54]

Thank you for an obviously personal and thoughtful note. I am sure many will disagree with you. One line jumped out at me..



That is something that hasn't been discussed much. When trying to climb back into the game, you need something that appears to be better than your competition...

It's been discussed...at least I know I've discussed it. Others have too, though.

BlackBerry needs to figure out who it wants to be in the smartphone game...what it wants to be known for. But it also has to determine whether what it wants to be known for is something the market really needs or wants. And while I like a lot of BB 10 offers, it's obvious that the Hub and flick typing aren't compelling enough in the eyes of consumers--at least not when consumers have to trade off a robust ecosystem to get them. Of course, that assumes consumers are even aware of the Hub and flick keyboard given the dirt of marketing.

What is BlackBerry better at than its competitors and do things warrant viable smartphone business? If not, then it should consider whether it's playing in the right industry.

Posted via CB10

[eddy_berry]

Wow. First off thank you for your contribution to BlackBerry. I would like to know what kind of work you specialized in while working for BB. I hope you are finding better days ahead with your new career. No doubt BlackBerry needs to put out what they say they will. It is rough time but I would like to see them get back into the black and get the people of KW what they have worked so hard for. Management definitely missed the mark on execution. Marketing and especially the more modern way, social media marketing, has been missing. no doubt the people on Crackberry are appreciative of the people who actually worked on the devices and the OS. It is a great phone and a great OS. Losing so many individuals will no doubt have an impact on how quickly this OS gets refined.

P.S. - I don't like paying for an app that is free to everyone else but that has everything to do with developers not wanting to kill development time on the smaller players. I will pay if I must.

Here is to better days.