Wow guys! Well done!
Some interesting things happening in the mobility industry today! I know Motorola is a bastion of the industry, but Google may have paid a bit too much, a bit too late to add much to its IP arsenal in the two front war they're presently embroiled in with Apple and Oracle.
My guess: they're trying to shore up LARGE gaps in their Android platform, prior to having to disclose (more) messy details in court.
Meanwhile, Motorola does not appear to be resting on its laurels, with the launch of a new handest Defy+ (The Inquirer) they seem firmly rooted (pardon the pun) into Android, and now with a potentially preferred development pipeline, who can compete with them?
Timeline Time!
October 2010: Moto sued by Micro$oft over mobile synch patents for mail and calendar, et cetera, Moto responds: Hey M$, we should still be buddies! We are still willing to entertain WinPhone whenever you get around to making a decent product! (paraphrasing The Inquirer article) So Moto basically said, M$ you left us out in the cold, and Android was our only hope to make some money.
Novenber 2010: Moto fires back in court at M$, claiming 16 patent infringements, and M$ goes back to court to complain Moto refuses to play nice (ie: cheap) in licensing negotiations. Looks like M$ and Moto are ready to spill plenty of money in retainer fees here. (sources: here & here, thanks to The Register)
December 2010: Moto and Google folks talk tablet, while Moto remains stuffed shirt about details, Goog whips one out, and shows some functionality with a(an un-named Xoom) running Android 3.0 (The Inquirer) So I get that Google was working closely with tablet makers, but Google's Andy Rubin did not demo any other tablet devices while presenting at D.
Skip ahead a few months, Moto has launched the Atrix (My current smartphone), and the Xoom, both of which do okay at launch. {Related side-note here: I am completing the Atrix review, and it'll be going up soon!}
April 2011: Google announces that if manufacturers want early access to Android, they will need to divulge more of their roadmap to Google (The Inquirer). This looks like a legitimate request, and Google stated this was part of the ongoing push to address the fragmentation of Android versions and specialized builds that left several early Android devices out in the cold regarding adding additional functionality, and updates. I think this is where Google may have begun digging further into Motorola's Mobility business, perhaps beginning to more seriously commit to an acquisition internally.
May 2011: As a result of an ongoing court case, an internal Goog mail was revealed indicating that though Goog markets itself, and to a great extent their mobile OS as "Open-Source", the reality is they can (& have, it's implied) used their ability to pull Android support from handsets, leaving manufacturers in the lurch without key applications like Google Maps/Voice & Android market access. Not a very open thing to do, yet, within their reach into the handset marketplace, after all, if you want to play in my yard, I get to make up the rules as I go too. But keep changing them too often, and you may find an empty playground (The Register, Skyhook vs Google).
June 2011: Motorola gets up on their soapbox about Android apps, claims 70% of their handset returns are due to third-party applications hogging resources (The Register). Sanjay Jha (CEO of Moto) went on to say he hopes Motorola users feel like Moto customers, not Android or Carrier customers, which is what the MotoBlur experience is meant to deliver. Personally, my experience on MotoBlur has been less than stellar, and the social integration on my Atrix seems to lag the handset frequently, less so since the Bell update though. June is also notable for a little Google self-promotion: (The Inquirer) citing 500,000 Android device activations daily, Google has made huge inroads into the mobile OS marketplace with the folks that count : CUSTOMERS. It is looking good for them to consider getting into the handset business with their 33% marketshare as of April 2011, Gartner was convinced Android will account for nearly half of the mobile OS marketplace by end of 2012.
August 2011: On the 9th - Moto comes out of the gate in early stating they would be interested in M$ Win Phone, but at present all of their development efforts have been focused on Android. After the recent sweetheart deal M$ made with Nokia, this made a convenient cover-up on what must have been frantic 11th hour perparations to close acquisition loopholes - interesting to note, Moto took this opportunity to state their marketplace differentiation will stem from their significant IP portfolio, and they will be pushing an agressive European rollout of global-enabled handests. Moto furthered this position by slagging the other entries in the mobile marketplace : HP's WebOS(which they paid too much for from Palm) & RIM's BB7 OS, I guess that makes WinPhone 7 the first choice of the benched players.
This brings us to today's awesome announcement! Again, I would like to congratulate Motorola on a stunning achievement in getting bought by one of the few companies that has that kind of balance sheet, and is not Apple. Speaking of Cupertino, I'd be releasing as many leaks about the upcoming iPhone 5 as possible right now, to get the media off this topic , if I were them. Seriously though, Apple is most likely rubbing thir gleeful hands together, having already spotted the weakenss in what appears to be an otherwise decent acquisition:
BUYING A HARDWARE MANUFACTURER HAS ALIENATED ANY OTHER COMPANY THAT MAKES OR WAS CONSIGERING MAKING ANDROID DEVICES.
Crap guys, we're not talking small potatoes here either Samsung and HTC have to be mad as hell! And what about tablets? Android was supposed to lead the charge against Apple's basically unchallenged market dominance, but that was generally predicated on having several hardware flavors for consumers to choose from to erode the CupertinoColussus' massive head start.
Plenty of conclusions to draw here:
1. Google realized not being more serious in those Nortel patent bids was a dumb idea.
2. Teaming up with Moto means taking on more litigation in process, but may offer some protection in other ways, from IP acquisitions to other lawsuits Motorola is waging in the industry.
3. Microsoft and Nokia are DOOMED? Could this be true? I think if M$ and Nokia get a variety of handest form factors into the market, and at a reasonable cost, they could get lucky!
4. Motorola hit a HOME RUN here, and investors must be silly with excitement.
We're a ways away from this being approved, and actually underway, then there's the SEC fine tooth comb that has yet to be passed. I wish them both good luck with the gauntlet ahead, they'll need a fair bit to make it out the other end as planned.
Though, I personally have to agree with my favorite Tech pundit John C. Dvorak, this fight is just getting interesting!
Showing posts with label BlackBerry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BlackBerry. Show all posts
Monday, 15 August 2011
Wednesday, 3 August 2011
RIM - The Demise of BlackBerry OS, and the rise of QNX/M$/Droid?
I recently stumbled across this CNet article: http://cnet.co/nRw65K, advising folks to think twice before opting for the latest and greatest BBOS7 RIM mobile handsets, and I got to thinking, why is RIM dumping BBOS as a platform? Three notable reasons came to mind immediately:
Image -courtesy-RIM
1. USER INTERFACE - RIM always sought, but never reached the intuitive user interface iOS managed, from round one. This is the cost of being an innovator in the digital mobility age, just look at how much time, effort, and cash Nokia dumped into Symbian before killing it altogether.
2. BES SECURITY - Designed for a robust & compelling mobile platform for Enterprise IT, this is one of those qualities most folks use as an answer to the "what is your biggest area of opportunity?", their largest strength and standalone compelling industry statement is their BES secret soup recipe. HOWEVER - worth noting, remember the trouble this caused them recently from governmental agencies in EMEA?
3. BLACKBERRY APP WORLD - RIM needed this to take off, like a ROCKET, whereas the marketplace sort of shrugged, and kicked a pebble down the street mumbling to themselves. SOLUTION = Developers! RIM can still turn this around, (especially with what we're going to discuss next re: PlayBook) take a bite out of Apple's developer mindshare! Offer a 85/15 split, then add additional total sales threshold bonuses, run an integrated social media campaign to boost awareness, and subsidize initial purchases through BlackBerry App World, "Deals of the Day" or other branding. It's not hard to engage a technologically-connected audience, especially if you already have their BBM - just sayin'.
Here's what a little research came up with as a brief (&incomplete) timeline of RIM events:
April 09, 2010 - http://bit.ly/bmsqWU RIM buys QNX
-RIM's acquisition of QNX allowed them to dig deeper into the neutrino platform, both acquiring a new services delivery channel, direct into enterprise IT, and a new base to build and roll out a brand-new user experience.
May 3, 2011 - http://cnet.co/jG0Cuk RIM & M$
-About a year after RIM's acquisition of QNX, at BlackBerry World conference, Steve Ballmer announced BING integration at the OS level. This despite the fact they are direct competition in the mobile marketplace, combined with the M$/Nokia partnership (CNet again here: http://cnet.co/dXrin6 ), makes me wonder if the Titans have decided to close ranks and strategize together on how to reclaim some marketshare out of an increasingly competitive landscape.
~Now, we discuss where I think RIM can make a serious "play" to get marketshare back. Courtesy ZDNet : http://zd.net/hZUocH PlayBook will provide Android support! This is an awesome idea, and opens up a host of opportunities for RIM. I would dearly love to get my hands on some of their latest gear to test personally, but alas, I've got other financial commitments on the go. (FYI, renovations SUCK.)
Image -courtesy-RIM
RIM can completely bounce back - but they need to differentiate their PlayBook from the slew of it's competition, and BB handset integration is not going to sell new customers, or entire old customers to return. RIM needs a killer app, Angry Birds is AWESOME, but they need an exclusive idea, hopefully tied into their hardware / OS ecosystem to ensure it remains an exclusive title for their platform. GAME ON.
So RIM, if you're out there in the 1's and 0's listening, I'm happy to offer my services as a tech consultant (or even a reviewer!), just be prepared to get a brutally honest opinion back, I am rooting for ya!
1. USER INTERFACE - RIM always sought, but never reached the intuitive user interface iOS managed, from round one. This is the cost of being an innovator in the digital mobility age, just look at how much time, effort, and cash Nokia dumped into Symbian before killing it altogether.
2. BES SECURITY - Designed for a robust & compelling mobile platform for Enterprise IT, this is one of those qualities most folks use as an answer to the "what is your biggest area of opportunity?", their largest strength and standalone compelling industry statement is their BES secret soup recipe. HOWEVER - worth noting, remember the trouble this caused them recently from governmental agencies in EMEA?
3. BLACKBERRY APP WORLD - RIM needed this to take off, like a ROCKET, whereas the marketplace sort of shrugged, and kicked a pebble down the street mumbling to themselves. SOLUTION = Developers! RIM can still turn this around, (especially with what we're going to discuss next re: PlayBook) take a bite out of Apple's developer mindshare! Offer a 85/15 split, then add additional total sales threshold bonuses, run an integrated social media campaign to boost awareness, and subsidize initial purchases through BlackBerry App World, "Deals of the Day" or other branding. It's not hard to engage a technologically-connected audience, especially if you already have their BBM - just sayin'.
Here's what a little research came up with as a brief (&incomplete) timeline of RIM events:
April 09, 2010 - http://bit.ly/bmsqWU RIM buys QNX
-RIM's acquisition of QNX allowed them to dig deeper into the neutrino platform, both acquiring a new services delivery channel, direct into enterprise IT, and a new base to build and roll out a brand-new user experience.
May 3, 2011 - http://cnet.co/jG0Cuk RIM & M$
-About a year after RIM's acquisition of QNX, at BlackBerry World conference, Steve Ballmer announced BING integration at the OS level. This despite the fact they are direct competition in the mobile marketplace, combined with the M$/Nokia partnership (CNet again here: http://cnet.co/dXrin6 ), makes me wonder if the Titans have decided to close ranks and strategize together on how to reclaim some marketshare out of an increasingly competitive landscape.
~Now, we discuss where I think RIM can make a serious "play" to get marketshare back. Courtesy ZDNet : http://zd.net/hZUocH PlayBook will provide Android support! This is an awesome idea, and opens up a host of opportunities for RIM. I would dearly love to get my hands on some of their latest gear to test personally, but alas, I've got other financial commitments on the go. (FYI, renovations SUCK.)
RIM can completely bounce back - but they need to differentiate their PlayBook from the slew of it's competition, and BB handset integration is not going to sell new customers, or entire old customers to return. RIM needs a killer app, Angry Birds is AWESOME, but they need an exclusive idea, hopefully tied into their hardware / OS ecosystem to ensure it remains an exclusive title for their platform. GAME ON.
So RIM, if you're out there in the 1's and 0's listening, I'm happy to offer my services as a tech consultant (or even a reviewer!), just be prepared to get a brutally honest opinion back, I am rooting for ya!
Tuesday, 2 August 2011
#Apple #iPhone5 #Mobile #Android
So, I've had Apple iOS and Motorola Android user experience, in addition to Blackberry. (We'll leave Noklia, and symbian/other attempts alone for the moment.)
Device comparison stacks up simply in my opinion:
iPhone = Emminently intuitive. Walled Garden makes non-tech savvy feel comfortable.
Android = Emminently customizable. OS open architecture, catered to power users, tinkerers and hackers..
Blackberry = Corporate clientele. BES environment security, BBM simplicity, Market Innovator and clumsy hardware.
The tale of the tape here seems to be if you're a tech junkie, get a Droid, newbs ought to prefer iPhones, and I think BlackBerry is writing their last gasp, without a complete interface and handset innovation.
Personal $0.02, I hope Research In Motion figures it our in time, before they are forced into the same position Nokia is in, once a bastion of the indusrty, now stagnant, the first Xerox of the mobility wars.
Device comparison stacks up simply in my opinion:
iPhone = Emminently intuitive. Walled Garden makes non-tech savvy feel comfortable.
Android = Emminently customizable. OS open architecture, catered to power users, tinkerers and hackers..
Blackberry = Corporate clientele. BES environment security, BBM simplicity, Market Innovator and clumsy hardware.
The tale of the tape here seems to be if you're a tech junkie, get a Droid, newbs ought to prefer iPhones, and I think BlackBerry is writing their last gasp, without a complete interface and handset innovation.
Personal $0.02, I hope Research In Motion figures it our in time, before they are forced into the same position Nokia is in, once a bastion of the indusrty, now stagnant, the first Xerox of the mobility wars.
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