Originally Posted by
aragone79 There are so many thread like this. US market seems need to leave carriers based market for selling smartphones. Sells smartphone without contract and let customers choose what smartphone and carriers that fit to their needs.
BB is
already selling phones direct and unlocked on their website. They did this all last quarter, and had their lowest sales in a decade. Why? Because very, very few people in the US buy phones unlocked at full retail - 98% of them buy their phones subsidized from their carrier. That isn't likely to change anytime soon.
Also, BB doesn't provide any direct customer support, so if you buy direct, you are totally on your own. BB won't even take a support call unless you are transferred to them by your carrier.
That's the reality: in the US, if you aren't working with the carriers, you aren't likely to sell a ton of phones, and you certainly won't get support. BB needs the carriers
far more than the carriers need BB. Folks here need to realize that before they suggest that BB should violate their carrier contracts and do things like update OSs directly. That could result in the carriers refusing to activate any new BBs on their network, and
then where is BB going to be, when their customers can't get cell service in the US?