(The Verge) If RIM wants to fix the BlackBerry brand, it's time for some demolition
If RIM wants to fix the BlackBerry brand, it's time for some demolition | The Verge
2: Stop betting on past successes
For years RIM has maintained that BlackBerry devices were better than other platforms thanks to hooks like BBM, a great physical keyboard, push email, and superior security.
But here's the reality: BBM has been obviated thanks to services like iMessage, nearly every platform does push email now, it turns out people really don't mind virtual keyboards, and though you may have great security features, enterprise operations around the world can't deploy iPads and iPhones fast enough to their teams.
Cold water? You've lost your edge. Your OS is worse, your applications are worse, your key features have been marginalized, and you literally have nothing innovative to talk about. Even no-marketshare-Microsoft bests you in this department. They are actually moving forward, not looking back.
To fix this problem you have to actually innovate. Find a way to bring consumers and developers back to your platform. What would motivate one of iOS' top-earning developers to choose your operating system on which to build their next app? What would make a consumer choose your phone over the iPhone 5, or the latest Android device? If you don't have a real answer to those questions, you're going to have a problem finding your way out of this mess �and the answers have nothing to do with great security.
This is a bit of a much longer article, and the part I most agreed with. When I read through the comments of the supporters, too many of their arguments seem to revolve around keyboard, enterprise, BBM, and security. They fail to realize these "strengths" are exactly what faithful RIM fans have been walking away from in droves over the past year or so. The market knows about these things and they just keep on buying something else. It is time to realize that and let go of the old wars no one is fighting. RIM won each of those battles and still lost the war. Time to refocus on new strengths.