RIM's CEO "Other Manufacturers Could License BlackBerry 10" But Would They Want To?

BY: 

Dave Forde
August 2, 2012

At the bequest of David Cameron, British Prime Minister of London (fancy talk for an invitation) Research In Motion’s CEO, Thorsten Heins is in London, and probably checking out London 2012 Olympic Games.  All part of “Team RIM’s” very public attempts to sway as many people as possible to not give up on Research In Motion, as well prepare the world for the coming Blackberry 10 operating system.  As part of his visit he took time to talk with Telegraph, and shared his vision for RIM and Blackberry 10.

Heins was also quoted as saying,  “We don’t have the economy of scale to compete against the guys who crank out 60 handsets a year. We have to differentiate and have a focused platform. To deliver BB10 we may need to look at licensing it to someone who can do this at a way better cost proposition than I can do it. There’s different options we could do that we’re currently uinvestigating.”  Now when you look at smartphone market share Apple who offers “one” smartphone is the market leader, so maybe there is something that RIM could learn and not try to complete with they other boys who have “crank out 60 handsets a year.”

Thorsten also suggested that the Blackberry 10 operating system could be licensed by other vendors such as Samsung or Song, something he commented the company is considering as an option.  In theory this is a great idea, as license fees can be a great revenue source but would these manufactures sign on the dotted line for an idea?  RIM has not confirmed a specific date as to when Blackberry 10 will hit the market, last report suggested January 2012, which would still be a first version and usually comes with software bugs.

So if RIM did move in this direction an offer a license fee on Blackberry 10, would other manufactures embrace the operating system?

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Dave Forde


Dave “The Connector” Forde has been involved in the marketing, public relations and technology industry across Canada for over 20 years in various sales and marketing roles, he launched The Connected One network of business sites which connects buyers to the right sellers. Profectio and PR In Canada covers news about the marketing and public relations industry each day helping professionals advance their career and businesses. He also serves as an advisor to a number of businesses across the country. Find Dave on LinkedIn and Twitter.


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