Sunday, August 5, 2012

RIM Took a Hard Look at Android Before Forging Ahead with BlackBerry


Research In Motion (RIM) CEO Thorsten Heins has his work cut out for him. Faced with growing skepticism regarding RIM's future, he has to make sure his company delivers the goods and is able to convince business clients and consumers that the BlackBerry platform is still relevant. One has to wonder, wouldn't it have been easier to go all-in with Android instead? That was something Heins said his company looked at, but ultimately decided against.

"We took the conscious decision not to go Android. If you look at other suppliers' ability to differentiate, there's very little wiggle room," Heins explained in an interview with The Telegraph.
Heins said his company looked at Android "seriously" but felt the promise of BlackBerry would deliver a better experience to consumers. That also comes with its own set of challenges, of course, and RIM's bottom line has been affected by software and product delays.
A lot is hanging on BlackBerry 10, and RIM is planning to launch a pair of BB10 devices in the coming months. That might not be enough. Heins understands there needs to be more and cheaper devices to choose from.
"To deliver BB10 we may need to look at licensing it to someone else who can do this at a way better cost proposition than I can do it," Heins added. "There are different options we could do that we're currently investigating."
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