Research In Motion is just hours away from the launch of BlackBerry 10, its latest mobile platform that it hopes will put it back in fighting form among smartphone competitors. As the countdown continues, Marketing wanted to cast a wide net on launch commentary. RIM’s shortcomings in the smartphone
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space have contributed to a huge stock drop in recent years and no shortage of gloomy predictions about the company’s future. But the iPhone proved how transformational a single product can be and, as the reportage below indicates, people seem willing to give RIM another shot at greatness.
As Marketing begins its examination of the BB10 launch, here’s the chatter on BlackBerry 10:
Rob Gillies @ Time
“Now, there’s some optimism. Previews of the software have gotten favorable reviews on blogs. Financial analysts are starting to see some slight room for a comeback. RIM’s stock has nearly tripled to about $16.30 from a nine-year low in September, though it’s still nearly 90 percent below its 2008 peak of $147. Most analysts consider a BlackBerry 10 success to be crucial for the company’s long-term viability.”
Peter Nowak @ Canadian Business
“Does anybody else have the feeling that this week’s launch of BlackBerry 10 doesn’t really matter? It’s not for anything that Research In Motion is or isn’t doing with its long-awaited and overdue handsets, but rather because mobile devices are on their way to becoming commoditized… Phones and tablets are inevitably following computers into commoditization. Apple may still charge a premium for its products, but it will ultimately have to settle for a relatively small market share as a result, just as it has in computers. There is also a limit to that premium—with the likes of Google and Amazon setting the pace, the respective days of $700 smartphones and $500 tablets are numbered. Which brings us back to BlackBerry. With shrinking margins on the horizon, why would anyone want to be in the smartphone or tablet market?”
Lance Ulanoff @ Mashable
“It’s not just what RIM is doing. I’ve noticed the sentiment around the BlackBerry brand has changed, too. People have stopped joking about RIM. There’s an air of anticipation about this week’s unveiling. There are stories about RIM’s chance to be the “number three” mobile OS.”
Will Connors @ The Wall Street Journal
“In the first sign that it’s serious, [RIM] confirmed Friday it would run ads for the new devices during next month’s Super Bowl. It’s the first time RIM has run Super Bowl ads, and underscores the Waterloo, Ontario, company’s marketing ambitions for the roll-out.”
Charles Arthur @ The Guardian
“The key to a BlackBerry revival, suggests Francisco Jeronimo, smartphone analyst at IDC, will be whether it can persuade those corporate customers – the segment where it first grew to fame as Wall Street financiers discovered they could get secure email while out of the office – to stay with it.”
Louis Bedigian @ Forbes
“Whatever happens, [Thorsten] Heins is lucky he works for the underdog. While the media is on BlackBerry’s side, there is a whole world of consumers that are largely unaware of what Research In Motion is trying to accomplish. This could prove to be beneficial (people love to be surprised by an underdog) — but only if the company delivers a device that consumers actually care about.”
We’ll be reaching out to our readers in the marketing industry for commentary on BB10 as the launch rolls out. Want to share your observations with our readers? Email us with your thoughts, or tweet with #bblaunch.
