RIM just announced a security platform that covers BlackBerry devices — but also devices running Android and iOS. On one hand, it’s a sign that IT managers seek BlackBerry’s renowned security. On the other hand, it’s a sign that RIM is giving up on competing with its functionally superior rivals.

“If you can’t beat them, join them,” wrote telecom analyst Jeff Kagan, in a note. “This looks like RIM’s attempt to remain relevant in a changing marketplace.”

What’s the change? That people aren’t buying BlackBerry handsets anymore, choosing instead phones that run an operating system powered by Google or Apple. RIM’s global sales have plummeted 58 percent in the past year, according to a recent report by Canalys, which said RIM is doing even worse than that in the United States. RIM’s U.S. market share fell from 24 percent this time last year, to just 9 percent now. Meanwhile, the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet has been a total flop.

The new software, called BlackBerry Mobile Fusion, sounds great: IT managers can juggle apps, settings, passwords and other software on phones running all three major operating systems. They can wipe the memory of lost or stolen phones. And the system can handle multiple devices per user. This last bit is a key benefit since a lot of people who were issued a BlackBerry by their company have gone out and bought a cooler phone — to the chagrin of the IT folks.

If RIM’s intent is to shift from hardware to software and services, like IBM did so successfully, then this may make sense. But it’s hard to ignore BlackBerry Mobile Fusion’s acknowledgment of the ascendancy of Android and iPhone, at the cost of RIM’s core business. RIM will also add other platforms such as Windows Phone if there’s a demand, though at the moment, the company is “not hearing” that demand.

BlackBerry Mobile Fusion “will help stem the tide of those companies that may have considered eliminating their BlackBerry Enterprise Servers but it won’t help sell more phones,” Gartner analyst Phillip Redman told Reuters. “That’s what they really need to do.”

RIM discussed the software in a press conference, but Alan Panezic, RIM’s VP of enterprise product management and marketing, did not answer any questions (including our own) about how this changes BlackBerry’s competitive stance against Android and iOS.

Source:http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/29/9091786-new-rim-security-software-a-sign-blackberry-is-over

Research In Motion Ltd. said a software upgrade for the BlackBerry PlayBook that’s expected to include dedicated e-mail won’t come until February, missing holiday sales as RIM tries to revive demand for the tablet.

The PlayBook OS 2.0 upgrade won’t have BlackBerry Messenger, the free instant-messaging service that has fueled sales outside North America, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company said late yesterday in a blog. Messenger will be in a later upgrade, RIM said.

RIM is counting on the new QNX software that’s used for PlayBook and will power future BlackBerry phones to encourage programmers to build more applications for its devices. The company’s phones have lost market share to Apple Inc.’s iPhone and handsets based on Google Inc.’s Android software, which offer a wider range of apps. That drop led to investor demands for RIM to shake up its strategy and management.

“This represents another execution stumble given the company set expectations for an earlier delivery,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky wrote in a note today. The Toronto-based analyst rates RIM shares “sector perform.”

Shortly after RIM put the PlayBook on sale in April, it promised dedicated e-mail would come in an update this summer. Co-Chief Executive Officer Mike Lazaridis said in September that the upgrade would be demonstrated at last week’s BlackBerry developer conference and released “thereafter,” causing speculation that it would arrive in time for the holiday shopping season to spur PlayBook sales.

Shipments Decline

The tablet’s shipments dropped by more than half last quarter following criticisms of its e-mail shortcomings and lack of apps. Deliveries to retailers such as Best Buy Co. fell to 200,000 from 500,000 in the previous quarter as Apple shipped 9.25 million of its market-leading iPad.

RIM fell 7 percent to $20.72 at 4 p.m. in New York. The shares have declined 64 percent this year.

Today’s announcement “sustains low investor sentiment regarding the company’s ability to deliver competitive software.

Source:http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-10-26/rim-delays-blackberry-playbook-software-upgrade-to-february.html