Back in May of this year I had the opportunity to travel to Orlando for BlackBerry’s Live conference. I wrote a number of articles from my trip on itbusiness.ca. You can read them here, over there, and also here.
Recently, BBM, Blackberry’s popular messaging service, became available for Android and iOS devices. Since then, over 10 million new people have downloaded the app.
BBM Channels
I also wrote about BBM and BBM Channels in May. For those curious where Blackberry is going with BBM, Channels and monetization. It is well worth the read (if I do say so myself.) You can read that article over here.
BlackBerry’s board has put together a special committee to look at a potential sale of the company, joint ventures, strategic partnerships and other options.
I presently use a Nokia Windows Phone 8. However, I’m in the process of on boarding my new BlackBerry Z10.
I received my Z10 when I was in Orlando at the BlackBerry conference last month. One of the main reasons why I have been so slow to start using my new BlackBerry was because I am a heavy user of Evernote – both for business and personal. And guess what? There is not Evernote app for the Z10.
However, Evernote is tightly integrated into the new smartphone via an app called Remember
So it is with great delight that I am going to be a BlackBerry user again. Thanks to Dave Fleet for sharing with me how to link Remember with Evernote. And if you’re having the same problem, here’s what to do:
Alicia Keys. She might have stolen the show to be honest. At the Opening Keynote she announced an initiative aimed at empowering, educating and supporting women in STEM. The same day she hosted a panel on Women in Tech that was filled to capacity. Then in the evening she presided over a concert experience like no other.
BlackBerry Z10. I’ve been playing with the device since Monday afternoon and I’m really impressed. My primary device is a Nokia Windows Phone 8 so maybe comparing the two is not fair. But I’ve seen Android and iPhone users fall in love with BlackBerry’s newest device all week long. The apps are strong and the device is sleek. I know it’s probably not perfect but it’s a step in the right direction for the smartphone innovator.
BBM. The future is bright. Not just for the popular messaging system on the BlackBerry 10 devices. Watch for BBM to show up on your iPhone and Android devices this summer in a planned rollout. And also watch for BBM Channels: the newest social network.
BlackBerry. When the keynote began with CEO and President Thorsten Heins announcingthe new Q5 for emerging markets, I will be honest, my heart sank a bit. However, after digesting the full Opening Keynote I came away excited for the future of BlackBerry. Firstly, ignoring emerging markets is not smart from a business standpoint and BlackBerry is establishing itself as a leader here. Second, BlackBerry’s QNX and BlackBerry 10 is not only about smartphones. It’s about powering the whole internet and the devices and products that connect to it: smartphones, cars, homes, businesses, etc. Third, I mentioned it above but it’s worth repeating: BlackBerry supporting the case of increasing women’s role in leadership and technology is overdue in the industry as a whole. With BlackBerry carrying the torch, watch for other companies to follow suit.
I have embedded a number of links in the post to some articles and videos I produced during my time here at BlackBerry Live. Feel free to click on them for extra content.
Disclosure: As a contributor for itbusiness.ca I was invited to Orlando by BlackBerry and have been their guest during my stay.
In 2011 we interviewed a number of Toronto entrepreneurs on what they would do if they were running Research In Motion. Later this week RIM will be publicly launching their new Blackberry 10 device. Many people have said this event will determine the future of RIM. Only time will tell.
Today’s edition of thirdoceanTV features some very interesting and unedited interviews with some of these entrepreneurs.
Who was right? Who was wrong? What are your thoughts? Leave your comments below!
Guests:
Steve Hulford – File Mobile
Mark Reale – BNOTIONS
Jeremy Campbell – SpidVid
Ameet Wadhwani – OptMeIn
Andrew Peek – Jet Cooper and Rocketr
Greg Nisbet – Mediazoic (Greg talked about content partnerships. Here is a recent link he shared with me: http://www.newcanadianmusic.ca/buzz/item/134979/2013-01-28. Good call Greg!)
Note #2: The preceding post was first published on thirdocean.com/blog. thirdocean is a Toronto-based social media strategy and digital communications agency. I am a partner in this agency.
The following video was previously published on itbusiness.ca.
The way some BlackBerry fans reacted to the possibility that Research in Motion would ditch its physical QWERTY keyboard last week, you’d think it was blasphemy.
But with the most successful smartphones on the market offering larger touch screens and virtual keyboards, isn’t it time that BlackBerry got with it?
There’s a new social network amongst us. Path. To find out more about Path take some time to read this Forbes article.
Path was started by former Facebook-er Dave Morin. He was recently on Jason Calacanis’ show This Week in Startups. I suggest you give it a watch/listen for some amazing insights into Path as well entrepreneurship in general.
I could go into detail about what Path is and what makes it unique but I won’t. What I will say is that at the moment, it’s a mobile social network (Path calls itself the Smart Journal) which limits its users to a maximum of 150 friends.
This blog post is why I enjoy Path.
I remember joining Path sometime last summer. And I was not impressed. At the time it seemed as a limited social network. And I was also very hot on Google Plus. But this past Christmas I was re-introduced to Path when it seemed everyone at a party I was at was using the newly released Path 2.0 on their iPhones and Androids. So I did what anyone else in my shoes would have done: I crapped all over Path and then proceeded to download the new version.
And I have been impressed ever since.
Beautiful User Experience
From the simplicity of the product to the unique “posting” system, there is no social network quite as easy on the eyes as Path. Path is very intuitive with very few steps in order to use it.
Replacement for BBM?
I own a BlackBerry Torch and also use an HTC Android smartphone. The Torch is the phone I primarily use as it has the number I’ve been using for 15+ years. And BBM is an app that I really like to use. But using Path on my HTC makes me question whether I really need to use BBM anymore? I just need to convince/wait for my brother and sister to get an iPhone, Android or other device that Path supports. (We use BBM to “chat”. No other messenger service has appealed to us yet.) Then I won’t really have an excuse for using BBM/BlackBerry.
Everything that I use BBM for I can use Path instead. And Path offers so much more!
Music sharing and discovery
One of my favourite things about Path is the music sharing and discovery feature. On Path you can share thoughts, location, photos (and video on iOS), when you wake up and go to sleep, and music. (Now, remember, I’m a longtime BlackBerry user so excuse me if this sort of feature has been around on other devices and products.)
As many of my friends will tell you, I love my music. And my music consists of U2, Neil Young (including his stuff with Buffalo Springfield, CSNY and Crazy Horse), Aerosmith (their old stuff mostly), Colin James, Black Dub, Led Zeppelin, Broken Social Scene, Rush, etc…
So I love sharing what I listen to. And I can also see what my other friends (up to 150 only. It’s another great feature of Path that you should learn more about) are listening to. Or at least that’s what I thought I could do. Until I clicked on a song icon a few days ago.
Baaam! I proceeded to have about 15 seconds of a song I’ve never heard play on my phone. Path actually allows us to “share” what we’re listening to like nothing I’ve ever seen/heard before.
Anyways, that’s my take on Path. Do you use Path? I would love to read your comments below.
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This post will not be the answer to all of RIM‘s current problems (yes, problems). It will, however, help the two-headed beast-led company get back on the path to respectability.
The answer can be found with one word: Respect.
What I have realized is that RIM does not seem to understand what respect means. And I hope to address that today here in this post.
Wikipedia defines respect as such: “Respect denotes both a positive feeling of esteem for a person or other entity (such as a nation or a religion), and also specific actions and conduct representative of that esteem.” The writers of that post might as well have added “company” to that definition. Nevertheless, this definition of respect is suitable for this blog post.
This blog post is not intended to summarize all the blunders that have occurred to RIM in recent months. If that’s what you’re looking for, you won’t wind that here. Search on your favourite search engine or tech blog to read up on those.
Let’s get into some detail below on this thing called respect:
Respect for the brand
The BlackBerry brand has been an innovator in the mobile and email communications space for many years. The BlackBerry pager was the first device to offer incoming and outgoing email to the masses. Many of the users were business people yet everyone wanted one. Unfortunately, affordability was not what it is today.
The BlackBerry brand stood for quality, innovation, and status. Today? Not so much. The public perception of both RIM and it’s BlackBerry products has fallen. And it seems that RIM is the only player not concerned about this.
Respect for the investor.
It’s one thing to defy public opinion and turn the other cheek. Has anyone ever heard of an investor at RIM suggesting that the company is on solid ground? We all know that the stock has taken a beating. But guess who else has taken a beating? The average Canadian investor who has money invested in Canadian stocks and mutual funds.
Almost every Canadian blue chip fund has a healthy portion of its portfolio invested in RIM. Which means many Canadians have lost a healthy portion of their savings due to the struggles at the Waterloo-based tech company.
Respect for their partners.
Partners such as Rogers, Bell, Telus, WIND, retail outlets, PR agencies, suppliers, employees, and many other partners have seen the BlackBerry and PlayBook portion of their sales here in Canada dwindle.
If it wasn’t for the ubiquitous Android devices or Apple’s iPhone, I’m very curious what the state of Canada’s technology community would look like…
Respect for their employees
How hard must it be to face family members, friends, colleagues and even passers-by when they know you work for RIM?
Respect for the consumer
I’ll be honest with you. I’ve had 2 BlackBerry’s. My current one is the Torch. The only reason I use it is because I received it free at a BlackBerry Torch launch party.
The Torch was supposed to give Apple’s iPhone a run for its money. Never happened.
The PlayBook? No comment. Although everyone who uses one loves it.
I’m not even going to mention the 3 days with no data. And don’t get me started on $100 of free apps as an apology.
Respect. It is this humble blogger’s opinion that if the suits at Research In Motion respected their customers, partners, employees, investors, and brand that they would be in a better position.
Here’s a quick suggestion to get on the path to respectability: Be humble; start listening to your consumers, employees, investors, and partners; start focusing on your core strengths; and become passionate again for technology and innovation.
