Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems have recently started eating into Blackberry’s pie of corporate users. With policies such as BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) being implemented at Fortune 500 companies, many are opening for Android and Apple iOS to further make inroads into RIM’s main client base, which for much of its life has been corporate users.RIM’s domination has been mainly due to the manageability, security, and corporate focus of its Blackberry platform.
But with the wide development of applications that can be developed for both the Apple and Google platforms, IT professionals are having greater availability of choice to move away from Blackberry and consider other mobile platforms. In a survey conducted recently, RIM still holds quite a sway in the corporate market with almost 70 percent of company-purchased smartphones in North America being supplied from them. But another study by InformationWeek expects only 25 percent of continue to use Blackberry for the next two years. With RIM’s stock price hovering between the $12 to $17 range for the past 3 months, and at a level last seen in 2004, RIM depends a lot on the release of its Blackberry 10 platform to recapture market share in North America and Europe.
But delays in the release of its latest platform and issues about its service cropping in over the past two years, especially the RIM blackout in 2011 have affected its image on a worldwide scale, in a way that was never experienced in the Telecom industry. However, the newly released OS (2.0) for the Blackberry Playbook is showing a lot of promise. The tablet is now seen as a major contender to disrupt Apple,s dominance, especially with the price discounts being offered now. Blackberry needs to start recapturing its traditional markets and focus on developing telecom technologies to capture and increase its market share in Asia. It has been following this path for the last few quarters and sells more smartphones in India than Apple and in 2011, held 15 percent of the smartphone market in India. For the quarter ending on June 30, 60% percent of Blackberrys sold in India have been above $300.
In Indonesia, RIM commands an impressive 47 percent of the smartphone market in 2011, from a 9 percent share in 2009. This was mainly achieved through offering products at a competitive price of around $300 and offering its new products before release in its traditional markets of North America. Blackberry has the ability to remain a dominant player in the telecom technologies market but will need to offer services and products that are rolled out on time.