[anon(757282)]

Yeah, a radical idea.
Sell BB7 phones now. Customers get FREE BB10 phones when they are available.

BB7 is pretty good, and there are many people still using BB4 or 5 phones. Get them upgraded and committed to BB10 rollout.

This cannot be any worse than writing off inventory and dead sales for the next 9 months. It's a striking campaign and can generate revenue NOW. If BB10 is as good as RIM thinks it will be, they can still sell millions when released.

It is time for paradigm - busting thinking...

uh,...BE BOLD!!!

[Rangrfan]

you obviously have no clue how business works... you don't start a relaunch of an OS and basically a company by using this type of model. in this logic, they should just give away all product for free that way more people have more blackberry, yea, but it's not your money, so what do you care?

[app_Developer]

If they're going to give away BB10 phones, they would be better off giving them to people trading in iPhones or Android phones. That way they get *new* customers.

But even that doesn't make sense. The point of BB10 is (was?) to resurrect the company by making respectable margins again on a high end phone.

[itmccb]

If they're going to give away BB10 phones, they would be better off giving them to people trading in iPhones or Android phones. That way they get *new* customers.

But even that doesn't make sense. The point of BB10 is (was?) to resurrect the company by making respectable margins again on a high end phone.

Smoked by BB10 competitions, maybe? :P

[anon(757282)]

you obviously have no clue how business works... you don't start a relaunch of an OS and basically a company by using this type of model. in this logic, they should just give away all product for free that way more people have more blackberry, yea, but it's not your money, so what do you care?

It is my money. And it is drifting away because RIM cannot delivery even close to on time.

Get new customers now. Users of very old BB phones are not helping right now and are the quickest market to get new phone sales. Sales now, when needed. Similar idea to selling Win 7 now with cheap upgrade to Win 8.

Maybe not free, maybe another formula. But rather than criticize, you come up with a better idea, eh?

[SK122387]

I think RIM should sell BB7 devices for like $250 directly to customers. They have nothing but inventory, and this would get BlackBerrys in people's hands while also leaving their upgrades open for when Bb10 launches.


I know BB7 devices retail for a lot higher than $250, but right now, even charging $199 on contract is going to hurt RIM, when their competitors are offering much more advanced phones for a similar price.

Think of the people with older BlackBerrys that had been saving up for BB10 phones...they could spend $250 and get a brand new OS7 device, be content until the beginning of next year, and by then would have saved up more than enough money to get a new BB10 phone.

[otacon]

RIM will deplete their cash war chest if they do this... How are they going to afford compensating users who buy a BB7 device now when BB10 launches? Radical ideas are good, but they must make business sense for it to be viable...

[anon(757282)]

RIM will deplete their cash war chest if they do this... How are they going to afford compensating users who buy a BB7 device now when BB10 launches? Radical ideas are good, but they must make business sense for it to be viable...

Sell the phones at cost to keep existing customers, even give a discount coupon for BB10. Same for new customers. Grow the user base numbers. Cost will be less than losing and having to replace these customers (churn) especially with no BB10 phone to sell yet. Risk is losing them forever. RIM knows its cost structure, and like the cell phone companies who are reevaluating their pricing plans, RIM needs to analyze a plan of discounting and customer loyalty incentives to keep and grow the user base till BB10 is released.

If BB10 is hot, these customers will buy and so will many more at market prices, recouping the customer retention investment. If BB10 sucks, customers will not come, so any money saved or earned with BB7 will be moot, part of the assets that are liquidated.

[jrohland]

Unlike most other products, a mobile phone sold with a carrier subsidy (which is how the bulk of phones are sold in North America) have a 2 or 3 year lock in. That makes a huge difference at the buying decision point.

Secondly, RIM gets monthly cash for every BB registered on BIS/BES.

If they are going to write down inventory, they are MUCH better off selling them at cost (plus S&H) to any customer who trades in an Android, BlackBerry, iPhone or WP. Where jurisdictions allow, they should be sold sans warranty.

Some small percentage of those customers will use the phone without BIS but that is minuscule.

[pillswoj]

Sounds like a good plan to me. My upgrade cycle is for this fall, I was willing to wait a month or so for BB10 but won't wait until next year. My 9800 no longer fulfils my needs as far as web browsing and media go and I have no intention of upgrading to an OS7 phone and having it for the next 2 years when there are clearly better choices.

If they were to say to me " take a 9810 and you will get a priority upgrade for minimal $ when BB10 is available" I would probably take that option.

[Powdah]

I would like some version of this. I was holding on to an ancient Bold hoping for BB10 with the long past release date. Getting tired of a phone that will not even give me 3G.