Telecom Lead India: Research In Motion (RIM) will be looking for a perfect re-start with its BlackBerry 10 launch in January 2013.
Re-start is important for strategies of RIM whose revenue for the three months ended December 1, 2012 was down 47 percent to $2.7 billion from $5.2 billion in the same quarter of fiscal 2012.
RIM’s successful execution of strategies, however, will depend on — how many new products it will introduce in 2013, its smartphone strategies for emerging markets, enterprise’s eagerness to pick up phones from rivals such as Samsung and Apple and retail business plans.
Its marketing and channels are getting ready for the BlackBerry 10 launch. Several telecom operators and enterprise users are currently testing the new OS platform.
RIM’s BlackBerry 10 Ready Program is designed to address the needs of BlackBerry enterprise customers as they prepare their environments for the launch of BlackBerry 10 and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, RIM’s new enterprise mobility management solution.
In India, despite campaigns to promote BlackBerry phones among youths, RIM still generates larger revenue from enterprises. Sunil Lalvani, director, Enterprise sales, India, RIM, recently said BlackBerry 10 device has the potential to become best phone for Indian enterprises.
Though RIM has several reasons to cheer ahead of the launch of the new platform, it financial issues are set to create more troubles.
RIM CEO Thorsten Heins recently said timing of BlackBerry 10 launch event on January 30, 2013 may impact sales of current BlackBerry 7 products as some mobile customers may defer buying decisions. RIM is betting on government and enterprise users for BlackBerry 10.
Since RIM will be increasing its marketing spending to support the launch of BlackBerry 10, it expects to report an operating loss for the fourth quarter.
RIM, which did not have new products in the latest quarter, expects that there will be pressure on operating results.
In Q3, RIM shipped approximately 6.9 million BlackBerry smartphones and approximately 255,000 BlackBerry PlayBook tablets.
RIM’s hardware contributed 60 percent revenue, 36 percent from service and 4 percent from software and other revenue.
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Krishna Aravind
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