With BlackBerry’s help, the organization is now in the process of moving its commands to on-premises installations of BlackBerry UEM. Servers and infrastructure are being centralized, while commands are still being left in control of endpoint management. In addition to UEM, the organization is using Microsoft® Office 365®, BlackBerry Work, and BlackBerry Dynamics.
This new approach has resulted in several significant gains:
A Unified Mobile Strategy: First and foremost, the organization is working to achieve its core goal: consolidation. Rather than having to bolt on separate apps from separate commands, it can now manage everything centrally. This allows for better security, and also helps the different commands stay up to date with the latest mobility trends far more effectively than would otherwise be possible.
“The organization’s goal when they approached us was for every command to be centrally-managed,” says the Sales Director. “They wanted to consolidate their architecture and allow their end users to focus on using their applications rather than maintaining them. Through BlackBerry, they’re doing exactly that.”
Improved Efficiency, Better Support for Personnel: In addition to migrating its current applications to BlackBerry Dynamics, the organization is developing several new applications through BlackBerry Dynamics SDK. With BlackBerry’s help, it has already deployed a mission support application. Instead of having to spend hours doing paperwork before and after a mission, personnel can simply login to the app through their mobile devices.
The organization is also working on a human resources application that allows personnel to access functions such as benefits, vacation time, and more. It has also deployed SmartOffice through Dynamics.
“Enterprise email folks were saying that they needed to do more than email,” the Sales Director explains. “Eventually, someone’s going to want to install a fence monitoring application on an iPad, or someone is going to want to put ,their email on their smartphone. They can’t do that without an enterprise-supported architecture.”
Easier BYOD: By using BlackBerry Work and containerizing its apps with Dynamics, the organization can easily support the use of personal devices. Military data is kept separate from personal information, and UEM allows IT to easily manage and keep track of everything.
“The way the organization looks at it is that there’s a clear divide between personal and professional data,” says the Director. “They let their personnel use personal apps on their devices within acceptable use, and BlackBerry allows them to keep those apps separate from the stuff they need to protect.”
Security, Control, Compliance: Finally, through BlackBerry’s security functionality, the organization is able to keep sensitive data both protected and classified. IT can keep sensitive files and data stored within its container, and sensitive mission details are protected from the eyes of everyone save those who need access.
More importantly, because BlackBerry’s solutions are so easy to use from an end-user standpoint, the organization need not worry as much about accidental data leaks.
“In any organization, insider threat or negligence is the biggest security risk,” says the Sales Director. “And it usually happens because people feel security interferes with their job. If we make it easy to follow security rules, people won’t feel the need to violate them.“
BlackBerry Tablet OS (QNX)
The BlackBerry PlayBook was the first RIM product whose BlackBerry Tablet OS was built on QNX, launched in April 2011 as an alternative to the Apple iPad. However, it was criticized for having incomplete software and a poor app selection. It fared poorly until prices were substantially reduced, like most other tablet computers released that year. The BlackBerry Tablet OS received a major update in February 2012, as well as numerous minor updates.
BlackBerry 10, a substantially updated version of BlackBerry Tablet OS intended for the next generation BlackBerry smartphones, was originally planned for release in early 2012. The company delayed the product several times, remembering the criticism faced by the BlackBerry Playbook launch and citing the need for it to be perfect in order to stand a chance in the market. The most recent model with this OS was the BlackBerry Leap.
In September 2015, BlackBerry announced the Priv, a handset running Android 5.1.1 "Lollipop". It is the first phone by the company not to run an in-house built operating system. The version of Android running on the Priv is very similar to the standard version developed by Google, with some changes to improve productivity and security. BlackBerry implemented some of the features of BlackBerry 10 within Android, such as BlackBerry Hub, BlackBerry Virtual Keyboard, BlackBerry Calendar, and BlackBerry Contacts.[142]
On July 26, 2016, a mid-range model with only an on-screen keyboard was introduced, the slim BlackBerry DTEK50, powered by the then-latest version of Android (6.0, Marshmallow) and featuring a 5.2-inch full high-definition display. BlackBerry chief security officer David Kleidermacher stressed data security during the launch, indicating that this model included built-in malware protection and encryption of all user information. By then, the BlackBerry Classic, which used the BlackBerry 10 OS, had been discontinued.[143][144]
In July 2016, industry observers expected the company to announce two additional smartphones over the subsequent 12 months, presumably also with the Android OS.[145] However, BlackBerry COO Marty Beard told Bloomberg that "The company's never said that we would not build another BB10 device."[146]
In 2018, the last Blackberry smartphone, the BlackBerry Key2 LE, was released. In 2022, BlackBerry discontinued support for BlackBerry 10, effectively ending their presence in the smartphone market.[147]
Through the years, particularly as the company moved towards cybersecurity, BlackBerry has made numerous acquisitions of third-party companies and technology.
Slipstream Data Inc was a network optimization/data compression/network acceleration software company. BlackBerry acquired the company as a wholly owned subsidiary on July 11, 2006. The company continues to operate out of Waterloo.
Certicom Corp. is a cryptography company founded in 1985 by Gordon Agnew,[148] Ron Mullin and Scott Vanstone.
The Certicom intellectual property portfolio includes over 350 patents and patents pending worldwide that cover key aspects of elliptic-curve cryptography (ECC).[149]
The National Security Agency (NSA) has licensed 26 of Certicom's ECC patents as a way of clearing the way for the implementation of elliptic curves to protect U.S. and allied government information.[150]
On January 23, 2009, VeriSign entered into an agreement to acquire Certicom.[151] Research In Motion put in a counter-offer, which was deemed superior.[152] VeriSign did not match this offer,[153] and so Certicom announced an agreement to be acquired by RIM.[154] Upon the completion of this transaction, Certicom became a wholly owned subsidiary of RIM, and was de-listed from the Toronto Stock Exchange on March 25, 2009.
In June 2009, RIM announced they would acquire Dash Navigation, makers of the Dash Express.[155]
In August 2009, RIM acquired Torch Mobile, developer of Iris Browser, enabling the inclusion of a WebKit-based browser on their BlackBerry devices, which became the web browser in subsequent Java-based operating systems (BlackBerry 6, BlackBerry 7) and operating systems (QNX based BlackBerry Tablet OS and BlackBerry 10). The first product to contain this browser, the BlackBerry Torch 9800, was named after the company.
On September 8, 2010, DataViz, Inc. sold their office suite Documents To Go and other assets to Research In Motion for $50 million.[156] Subsequently, the application which allows users to view and edit Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint was bundled on BlackBerry Smartphones and tablets.
On March 26, 2010, the company announced its acquisition of Viigo, a Toronto-based company that developed the popular Viigo for BlackBerry applications, which aggregated news content from around the web. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.[157]
RIM reached an agreement with Harman International on April 12, 2010, for RIM to acquire QNX Software Systems. The acquired company was to serve as the foundation for the next generation BlackBerry platform that crossed devices.[158][159][160] QNX became the platform for the BlackBerry PlayBook and BlackBerry 10 Smartphones.
–2001: early years and growth
Research In Motion Limited was founded in March 1984 by Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin.[4] At the time, Lazaridis was an engineering student at the University of Waterloo while Fregin was an engineering student at the University of Windsor.[5] In 1988, RIM became the first wireless data technology developer in North America and the first company outside the Nordic countries to develop connectivity products for Mobitex wireless packet-switched data communications networks. Mobitex's wireless data transport also became RIM's first wireless data service that powered the Blackberry and Palm devices until it was phased out.[6] In 1990, RIM introduced the DigiSync Film KeyKode Reader.[7] In 1991, it introduced the first Mobitex protocol converter. In 1992, it introduced the first Mobitex point-of-sale solution, a protocol converter box that interfaced with existing point-of-sale terminal equipment to enable wireless communication. In 1993, it introduced the RIMGate, the first general-purpose Mobitex X.25 gateway.[citation needed] In the same year, it launched Ericsson Mobidem AT and Intel wireless modems containing RIM modem firmware. In 1994, it introduced the first Mobitex mobile point-of-sale terminal. In the same year, it received the Emmy Award for Technical Innovation and the KPMG High Technology Award. In 1995, it introduced Freedom, the first Type II PCMCIA radio modem for Mobitex. [citation needed]
In 1995, RIM was financed by Canadian institutional and venture capital investors through a private placement in the privately held company. Working Ventures Canadian Fund Inc. led the first venture round[8] with a C$5,000,000 investment with the proceeds being used to complete the development of RIM's two-way paging system hardware and software. A total of C$30,000,000 in pre-IPO financing was raised by the company prior to its initial public offering on the Toronto Stock Exchange in January 1998 under the symbol RIM.[9]
In 1996, RIM introduced the Interactive Pager, the first two-way messaging pager, and the RIM 900 OEM radio modem. The company developed the pager prototype with the support of Intel Corporation.[10] The company worked with RAM Mobile Data and Ericsson to turn the Ericsson-developed Mobitex wireless data network into a two-way paging and wireless e-mail network. Pivotal in this development was the release of the Inter@ctive Pager 950. In August 1997, a prototype was presented to BellSouth executives, who were impressed with the device and agreed to a $70-million deal that involved the supply of 100,000 devices.[11] The pager started shipping in August 1998. About the size of a bar of soap, this device competed against the Skytel two-way paging network developed by Motorola. [citation needed]
In 1999, RIM introduced the BlackBerry 850 pager. This was also the first device to use the Blackberry OS.[12] Named after its keyboard's similarity to the druplets of the blackberry fruit,[13] the device could receive push email from a Microsoft Exchange Server using its complementary server software, BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES). Its introduction set the stage for the company's future enterprise-oriented products, such as the BlackBerry 957 in April 2000, the first BlackBerry smartphone. The BlackBerry OS platform and BES continued to increase in functionality, while the incorporation of encryption and S/MIME support helped BlackBerry devices gain increased usage by governments and businesses.[14][15] During fiscal 1999-2001, RIM's assets grew eight-fold due to massive capacity expansion. [citation needed]
–2011: global expansion and competition
RIM soon began to introduce BlackBerry devices for the consumer market as well, beginning with the BlackBerry Pearl 8100—the first BlackBerry phone to include multimedia features such as a camera. The Pearl series was highly successful, as was the subsequent Curve 8300 and Bold 9000 series. Extensive carrier partnerships fueled the rapid expansion of BlackBerry users globally in both enterprise and consumer markets. [citation needed]
Despite the arrival of the first Apple iPhone in 2007, BlackBerry sustained market share growth well into 2011. The introduction of Apple's iPhone on the AT&T network in the fall of 2007 in the United States prompted RIM to produce its first touchscreen smartphone for the competing network in 2008—the BlackBerry Storm. It sold well but suffered from mixed to poor reviews and poor customer satisfaction.[15][16] The iPhone initially lagged behind BlackBerry in both shipments and active users, due to RIM's head start and larger carrier distribution network. In the United States, the BlackBerry user base peaked at approximately 21 million users in the fall of 2010.[17][18][19] That quarter, the company's global subscriber base stood at 36 million users.[20] As the iPhone and Google Android accelerated growth in the United States, the BlackBerry began to turn to other smartphone platforms. Nonetheless, the BlackBerry line as a whole continued to enjoy success, spurred on by strong international growth. As of December 1, 2012, the company had 79 million BlackBerry users globally[21] with only 9 million remaining in the United States.[22]
Even as the company continued to grow worldwide, investors and media became increasingly alarmed about the company's ability to compete with devices from rival mobile operating systems iOS and Android. CNN cited BlackBerry as one of six endangered US-Canadian brands. Analysts were also worried about the company's management structure.[23][24]
Following numerous attempts to upgrade its existing Java platform, the company acquired QNX Software Systems to upgrade the BlackBerry platform, centered around its recently acquired real-time operating system QNX.[25] In March 2011, then-co-CEO Jim Balsillie suggested during a conference call that the "launch of some powerful new BlackBerrys" (eventually released as BlackBerry 10) would be in early 2012. However, analysts were "worried that promoting the mysterious, supposedly game-changing devices too early might hurt sales of existing BlackBerrys" (similar to the Osborne effect). The initial launch date was seen in retrospect as too ambitious and hurt the company's credibility at a time when its existing aging products steadily lost market share.[26]
On September 27, 2010, RIM announced the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, the first product running on the new QNX platform known as BlackBerry Tablet OS. The BlackBerry PlayBook was officially released to U.S. and Canadian consumers on April 19, 2011. It was criticized for being rushed to market in an incomplete state, and sold poorly. Following the shipments of 900,000 tablets during its first three quarters on market, slow sales and inventory pileups prompted the company to reduce prices and write down the inventory value by $485 million.[27]
BlackBerry's primary competitors were smartphones running Android OS, and the Apple iPhone. For a number of years, the BlackBerry was the leading smartphone in many markets, particularly the United States. The arrival of the iPhone and later Google's Android platform caused a slowdown in BlackBerry growth and a decline in sales in some markets, most notably the United States, leading to negative media and analyst sentiment over the company's ability to continue independently.[28]
When Apple's iPhone was introduced in 2007, it generated substantial media attention, with numerous media outlets calling it a "BlackBerry killer".[29][30] While BlackBerry sales continued to grow, the newer iPhone grew at a faster rate. The 87% drop in BlackBerry's stock price between 2010 and 2013 was primarily attributed to the performance of the iPhone handset.[31]
The first three iPhone models generally lagged behind the BlackBerry in sales, as RIM had major advantages in carrier and enterprise support; however, Apple continued gaining market share. In October 2008, Apple briefly passed RIM in quarterly sales when they announced they had sold 6.9 million iPhones to the 6.1 million sold by RIM, comparing partially overlapping quarters between the companies.[32] Though Apple's iPhone sales declined to 4.3 million in the subsequent quarter[33] and RIM's increased to 7.8 million, for some investors this was a sign of weakness.[34] The iPhone began to sell more phones quarterly than the BlackBerry in 2010, brought on by the release of the iPhone 4.[35][36]
In the United States, the BlackBerry hit its peak in September 2010, with almost 22 million users, or 37% of the 58.7 million American smartphones.[37] BlackBerry then began to decline in use in the United States, with Apple's installed base in the United States finally passing it in April 2011.[38] Sales of the iPhone continued to accelerate, as did the smartphone market, while the BlackBerry began to lose users continuously in the United States. By February 2016, only 1.59 million (0.8%) of the 198.9 million smartphone users in the United States were running BlackBerry compared to 87.32 million (43.9%) on an iPhone.[39]
Google's Android mobile operating system, running on hardware by a range of manufacturers including Sony, Motorola, HTC, Samsung, LG and many others ramped up the competition for BlackBerry. In January 2010, barely 3 million (7.1%) of the 42.7 million Smartphones in use at the time in the United States were running Android, compared to 18 million BlackBerry devices (43%).[40] Within a single year Android had passed the installed base of the BlackBerry in the United States.[41] By February 2016, only 1.59 million (0.8%) of the 198.9 million smartphone users in the United States were running BlackBerry compared to 104.82 million (52.7%) running Android.[39]
While RIM's secure encrypted network was attractive to corporate customers, their handsets were sometimes considered less attractive to consumers than iPhone and Android smartphones. Developers often developed consumer applications for those platforms and not the BlackBerry.[42][43] During 2010s, even enterprise customers had begun to adopt BYOD policies due to employee feedback. The company also faced criticism that its hardware and operating system were outdated and unappealing compared to the competition, as well as that the browsing capabilities were poorer.[44]
BBM Enterprise for Individual Use
Sign in > Reset your password >
BlackBerry Messenger, disingkat BBM, adalah aplikasi pengirim pesan instan yang disediakan untuk para pengguna perangkat BlackBerry. Aplikasi ini mengadopsi kemampuan fitur atau aktivitas yang populer di kalangan pengguna perangkat telepon genggam. Contohnya fitur di aplikasi Google Maps atau Yahoo Messenger hingga aktivitas dengan Facebook atau Twitter. Semuanya bisa didapatkan oleh pengguna perangkat BlackBerry pada aplikasi ini. BlackBerry Messenger merupakan salah satu keunggulan dari penggunaan perangkat BlackBerry selain layanan Push Mail. Layanan Messenger ini dibuat khusus bagi pemilik BlackBerry dan dirancang khusus untuk berkomunikasi di antara pengguna. Cara menggunakan BlackBerry Messenger adalah dengan penghubung nomor PIN yang juga eksklusif dimiliki masing-masing perangkat BlackBerry.
Mulai tanggal 23 Oktober 2013, layanan BBM secara resmi bisa digunakan lintas platform dengan dirilisnya BBM untuk Android dan iOS.
Mulai tanggal 31 Mei 2019, layanan BBM secara resmi tidak beroperasi atau ditutup di semua perangkat seperti Android, BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, iOS, dan lainnya. Konsumen dapat beralih ke BBM Enterprise yang berbayar.
BlackBerry Messenger memiliki beberapa versi terdahulu yang disesuaikan dengan tipe masing-masing perangkat, yaitu:
Research In Motion (RIM) sebagai pemegang lisensi BlackBerry secara resmi meluncurkan BlackBerry Messenger versi terbaru yaitu OTA OS 5.0 untuk tipe 83xx / 81xx, 9000 Bold, 8900 Javelin, 95xx pada tanggal 13 Oktober 2009 di Indonesia.
Research In Motion (RIM) secara resmi meluncurkan BlackBerry Messenger untuk PlayBook dengan cara menghubungkan BlackBerry yang dihubungkan dengan BlackBerry Bridge.[3]
Terhitung Juni 2016 PT Elang Mahkota Teknologi Tbk (Emtek) telah resmi membeli BlackBerry Messenger, satu produk dari BlackBerry Limited, dengan nilai mencapai Rp 2,9 triliun. Kesepakatan senilai $207,5 juta atau sekitar Rp 2,7 triliun ini bakal berlangsung selama 6 tahun, dan akan memungkinkan Emtek untuk menggabungkan layanan mereka dengan BBM. Satu hal yang perlu dicatat adalah kesepakatan ini berlaku untuk BBM saja, tanpa menyertakan layanan BlackBerry Enterprise.
Aplikasi BlackBerry Messenger versi 4.5/4.6/4.6.1/4.7 mempunyai tampilan yang masih sangat sederhana, yang hanya terdiri dari nama-nama kontak dan status.
BlackBerry Messenger dapat menampilkan kontak dan status dari masing-masing pengguna. Untuk membuat suatu hubungan antar pengguna perangkat BlackBerry di dalam BlackBerry Messenger, pengguna harus menambah kontak dengan cara memasukkan nomor PIN dari pengguna lain. Selain menggunakan nomor PIN, menambah kontak bisa dilakukan dengan memasukkan alamat surat elektronik masing-masing pengguna. Selain itu,seperti layaknya Facebook atau Twitter, dalam BlackBerry Messenger juga dapat menampilkan status masing-masing pengguna yang akan muncul bersama dengan daftar kontak. Pengguna dapat memperbaharui status kapanpun dan dimanapun, hanya dengan mengetik status yang diinginkan di kolom status.
Pengguna BlackBerry Messenger juga dapat membagi berkas yang berupa data selain foto dan suara, kontak telepon dan kontak BlackBerry Messenger antar sesama pengguna. Berkas yang dikirimkan melalui aplikasi ini dapat tersampaikan ke pengguna yang dituju secara cepat dan mudah.
Dalam BlackBerry Messenger, pengguna juga dapat membuat percakapan grup. Mereka dapat melakukan percakapan dengan beberapa orang dengan waktu yang bersamaan. Untuk membuat suatu grup percakapan pengguna harus mengundang beberapa kontak untuk ikut dalam percakapan dalam grup ini. dalam satu grup beranggotakan maksimal 30.
Versi terbaru dari BlackBerry Messenger ini tentu saja banyak memiliki kelebihan dibandingkan dengan versi terdahulunya. Aplikasi baru ini juga sudah diunduh langsung di situs resmi BlackBerry.
Jika sebelumnya menambah kontak BlackBerry Messenger hanya dengan nomor PIN atau alamat surat elektronik saja pengguna, dengan BlackBerry kode batang spesial yang ada di layar BlackBerry Messenger di masing-masing pengguna perangkat BlackBerry dapat dipindai secara otomatis dan mengundang kontak baru untuk bergabung dengan daftar kontak BlackBerry Messenger. Contohnya dengan menggunakan kamera pada perangkat BlackBerry. Syaratnya perangkat harus mempunyai kamera untuk memindai kode batang perangkat lain. Kode batang ini juga dapat memudahkan pengguna BlackBerry untuk saling bertukar informasi kontak. Pengguna dapat melihat di Ubah Info Saya dan dapat digunakan untuk menyimpan data pribadi seperti nama, PIN BlackBerry, tautan situs dan yang lainnya.
Selain nama, pengguna dapat mengatur gambar tampilan sebagai personal avatar mereka. Avatar sebagai representasi pengguna tentang dirinya sendiri ataupun ego. Avatar dapat secara otomatis terlihat pada kontak BlackBerry Messenger. BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0 juga mengumpulkan avatar dari semua kontak yang ada dalam kontak BlackBerry pengguna.
BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0 dapat memungkinkan pengguna dapat memantau perubahan status dari setiap kontaknya. Pengguna bisa meng-klik panel Keadaan Terbaru di atas panel info tampilan Messenger untuk menampilkan daftar kontak yang baru saja memperbaharui status. Notifikasi akan selalu muncul di panel Keadaan Terbaru setiap kontak lain memperbaharui status mereka.
Jika pada versi BlackBerry Messenger terdahulu, cara menjaga data PIN kontak BlackBerry Messenger adalah dengan menyalin ke Buku Alamat, dengan BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0, pengguna hanya tinggal mengklik saja Salin Daftar Kontak di tampilan menu. Pilihan tempat penyimpanan untuk menyimpan data kontak bisa ke memori internal atau memori eksternal.
Membagi info ke seluruh atau beberapa kontak tidak perlu dengan cara mengetiknya satu persatu. Klik Pesan Penyiaran pada menu untuk mengirim info yang sama ke beberapa kontak sekaligus. Klik Semua untuk mengirim pesan yang sama ke semua kontak, atau pilih beberapa kontak saja dengan memilih nama-nama kontak tertentu dari daftar kontak.
Jika ingin membagi lokasi dari posisi berada atau ingin membagi lokasi sebuah tempat, klik Kirim Lokasi pada menu. Pilihan untuk mengirimkan lokasi bisa langsung dari lokasi berada dengan memanfaatkan fitur GPS, atau dari data lokasi yang telah disimpan sebelumnya di Peta BlackBerry. Permintaan lokasi kontak bisa juga dilakukan atau mengatur notifikasi kedekatan dengan kontak lain.
Pada BlackBerry Messenger versi sebelumnya, fasilitas untuk melakukan percakapan secara berkelompok memang sudah ada. Hanya saja pada BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0, fasilitas percakapan secara berkelompok ini bisa disertai dengan subyek obrolan. Jadi kontak yang baru diundang ketika percakapan sudah berlangsung tidak akan bingung untuk mengikuti topik percakapan. Aplikasi ini memungkinkan pengguna membuat atau bergabung dengan grup seseorang untuk tetap terhubung dan berbagi pengalaman secara waktu yang asli. Pengguna juga dapat melakukan percakapan maya dan berbagi pembaharuan lokasi, alamat, kalender, foto, daftar dan banyak lagi. Satu grup dapat menampung sebanyak 30 anggota.
Dengan BlackBerry Messenger versi 2,0, pengguna dapat berbagi berkas foto, suara, kontak telepon dan kontak BlackBerry Messenger berukuran besar sampai dengan ukuran 6MB. BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0 ini juga mendukung pengiriman berkas video. Pengiriman berkas melalui BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0 ini memungkinkan pengguna untuk mengirimkan berkas secara mudah dan cepat.
Adakalanya pengguna terlibat dalam percakapan seru dengan salah satu kontak, tetapi disaat yang bersamaan harus mengecek aktivitas lain di perangkat. Jelas agak merepotkan jika harus buka tutup layar BlackBerry Messenger. Pada BlackBerry Messenger versi 5.0 terdapat fasilitas untuk menempatkan kontak di layar tampilan awal. Jadi untuk membuka layar percakapan cukup mengakses dari lambang kontak yang ditempatkan pada tampilan awal.
Sejak 2017, BBM resmi bekerja sama dengan media Emtek Group, sejak itu juga BBM mengakses layanan streaming TV seperti SCTV, Indosiar, dan O Channel Sehingga BBM bisa menjadi alternatif streaming TV selain aplikasi Vidio.
Bách khoa toàn thư mở Wikipedia
BlackBerry Limited là một tập đoàn điện tử của Canada chuyên sản xuất, buôn bán các thiết bị di động và giải pháp di động như mẫu điện thoại ăn khách BlackBerry. Công ty này được thành lập năm 1984 tại Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
Trước khi sản xuất BlackBerry, RIM hợp tác với RAM Mobile Data và Ericsson để chuyển mạng dữ liệu không dây thành mạng máy tính nhắn tin 2 chiều và e-mail không dây Mobitex do Ericsson phát triển trước đó. Thành tựu của việc phát triển này là sự ra đời của máy nhắn tin Inter@ctive 950, được đưa ra thị trường vào tháng Tám, 1998. Với kích thước khoảng một thỏi xà bông, thiết bị này cạnh tranh với mạng nhắn tin 2 chiều SkyTel của Motorola.
Canadian technology company
BlackBerry Limited (formerly Research In Motion or RIM for short) is a Canadian software company specializing in cybersecurity. Founded in 1984, it developed the BlackBerry brand of interactive pagers, smartphones, and tablets. The company transitioned to providing software and services and holds critical software application patents.
Initially leading the mobile phone and pager industry in the 1980s and 90s, the company struggled to gain a lasting presence in the smartphone market of the new millennium. BlackBerry led the market in many countries, particularly the United States, until 2010, with the announcement of the iPhone 4. The company withered against the rapid rise of Apple and Android. After the troubled launch of the BlackBerry 10, it transitioned to a cybersecurity enterprise software and services company under CEO John S. Chen.[3] In 2018, the last BlackBerry smartphone, the BlackBerry Key2 LE, was released. In 2022, BlackBerry discontinued support for BlackBerry 10, ending their presence in the smartphone market.
BlackBerry's software products are used by various businesses, car manufacturers, and government agencies to prevent hacking and ransomware attacks. They include BlackBerry Cylance, the QNX real-time operating system; BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BlackBerry Unified Endpoint Manager), and a Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) platform.
BlackBerry 2FA (Formerly Strong Authentication)
A two-factor, certificate-based VPN authentication solution that allows users to authenticate without requiring PINs or passwords. [citation needed]
An IP-based enterprise instant messaging platform that provides end-to-end encryption for voice, video, and text-based communication. On February 7, 2017, Blackberry released the BBM Enterprise SDK, a "Communications Platform as a Service" kit that allows developers to incorporate BBM Enterprise's messaging capabilities into their own applications. Said capabilities include secure messaging, voice, video, file sharing, and presence information.[187]
An emergency communication system, AtHoc provides two-way messaging and notifications across a range of devices and platforms. On May 17, 2017, BlackBerry released AtHoc Account to help businesses more easily keep track of their staff in an emergency.[188]
An anti-eavesdropping solution that provides voice, data, and SMS encryption. [citation needed]
A real-time embedded operating system, QNX drives multiple software systems in modern auto vehicles, and forms the basis of solutions like BlackBerry Radar, an IoT-based asset tracking system for the transportation industry.[189]
BlackBerry IVY is an edge-to-cloud vehicle data platform.[190]
Since the turn of the century, RIM has been embroiled in a series of suits relating to alleged patent infringement.[191]
In 2001, Research In Motion sued competitor Glenayre Electronics Inc. for patent infringement, partly in response to an earlier infringement suit filed by Glenayre against RIM.[7] RIM sought an injunction to prevent Glenayre from infringing on RIM's "Single Mailbox Integration" patent.[192] The suit was ultimately settled in favour of RIM. [citation needed]
In June 2002, Research In Motion filed suit against 2000 start-up and competitor Good Technology.[193] RIM filed additional complaints throughout the year.[194] In March 2004, Good agreed to a licensing deal, thereby settling the outstanding litigation.[195]
On September 16, 2002, Research In Motion was awarded a patent pertaining to keyboard design on hand-held e-mail devices. Upon receiving the patent, it proceeded to sue Handspring over its Treo device.[194][196] Handspring eventually agreed to license RIM's patent and avoid further litigation in November of the same year.[197]
During the appeals, RIM discovered new prior art that raised a "substantial new question of patentability" and filed for a reexamination of the NTP patents in the United States Patent and Trademark Office. That reexamination was conducted separately to the court cases for infringement. In February 2006, the USPTO rejected all of NTP's claims in three disputed patents. NTP appealed the decision, and the reexamination process was still ongoing as of July 2006 (See NTP, Inc. for details).
On March 3, 2006, RIM announced that it had settled its BlackBerry patent dispute with NTP.[198] Under the terms of the settlement, RIM agreed to pay NTP US$612.5 million[198] in a "full and final settlement of all claims". In a statement, RIM said that "all terms of the agreement have been finalized and the litigation against RIM has been dismissed by a court order this afternoon. The agreement eliminates the need for any further court proceedings or decisions relating to damages or injunctive relief."[199]
On July 17, 2003, while still embroiled in litigation with NTP and Good Technology, RIM filed suit against Xerox in the U.S. District of Hartford, Connecticut. The suit was filed in response to discussions about patents held by Xerox that might affect RIM's business and also asked that patents held by Xerox be invalidated.[200]
On May 1, 2006, RIM was sued by Visto for infringement of four patents.[201] Though the patents were widely considered invalid and in the same veins as the NTP patents – with a judgement going against Visto in the U.K.[202][203] – RIM settled the lawsuit in the United States on July 16, 2009, with RIM agreeing to pay Visto US$267.5 million plus other undisclosed terms.[204]
On January 22, 2010, Motorola requested that all BlackBerry smartphones be banned from being imported into the United States for infringing upon five of Motorola's patents. Their patents for "early-stage innovations", including UI, power management and WiFi, are in question.[205] RIM countersued later the same day, alleging anti-competitive behaviour and that Motorola had broken a 2003 licensing agreement by refusing to extend licensing terms beyond 2008.[206] The companies settled out of court on June 11, 2010.[207]
On December 5, 2011, Research In Motion obtained an order granting its motion to dismiss plaintiff Eatoni's claims that RIM violated Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act and equivalent portions of New York's Donnelly Act. Eatoni alleged that RIM's alleged infringement of plaintiff's '317 patent constituted an antitrust violation. Eatoni Ergonomics, Inc. v. Research In Motion Corp., No. 08-Civ. 10079 (WHP) (S.D.N.Y. Dec 5, 2011), Memorandum and Order, p. 1 (Pauley, J.).[208]
In July 2012, a U.S. federal court jury awarded damages (later overturned) of $147 million against Research In Motion. The jury decided that Research In Motion had violated patents of Mformation and calculated damages of $8 each on 18.4 million units for royalties on past sales of devices to nongovernment U.S. customers only, not including future royalty payments inside and outside the U.S.[209] On August 9, 2012, that verdict was overturned on appeal. RIM had argued that Mformation's patent claims were invalid because the processes were already being used when Mformation filed its patent application. Judge James Ware said Mformation failed to establish that RIM had infringed on the company's patent.[210]
On May 26, 2017, BlackBerry announced that it had reached an agreement with Qualcomm Incorporated resolving all amounts payable in connection with the interim arbitration decision announced on April 12, 2017. Following a joint stipulation by the parties, the arbitration panel has issued a final award providing for the payment by Qualcomm to BlackBerry of a total amount of U.S.$940,000,000 including interest and attorneys' fees, net of certain royalties due from BlackBerry for calendar 2016 and the first quarter of calendar 2017.[211]
On March 8, 2018, BlackBerry Limited sued Facebook Inc. in federal court in Los Angeles. According to BlackBerry Limited, Facebook has built swaths of its empire on the messaging technology which was originally developed by them during the time when the Facebook chief, Mark Zuckerberg, was still living in a Harvard University dorm room.[212] Blackberry Limited alleged that many features of the Facebook messaging service infringe on BlackBerry patents.[213] In January 2021, BlackBerry shares jumped 20% after settling its patent dispute with Facebook.[214]
In November 2011, Blackberry, then RIM, was ranked 15th out of 15 electronics manufacturers in Greenpeace's re-launched Guide to Greener Electronics.[215] In its 2012 report on progress relating to conflict minerals, the Enough Project rated RIM the sixth highest of 24 consumer electronics companies.[216] In 2014, RIM partnered with Solutions for Hope to expand the number of conflict-free mineral regions in the Congo.[217]
On October 10, 2011, RIM experienced one of the worst service outages in the company's history. Tens of millions of BlackBerry users in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and North America were unable to receive or send emails and BBM messages through their phones.[218] The outage was caused as a result of a core switch failure, "A transition to a back-up switch did not function as tested, causing a large backlog of data, RIM said."[219] Service was restored on October 13, with RIM announcing a $100 package of free premium apps for users and enterprise support extensions.[220][221]
John Chen resigns from BlackBerry
On October 30, 2023 John S. Chen announced his resignation as CEO through an employee letter posted to the Blackberry Limited blog page stating he will cease his role on November 4, 2023.[99]
Until 2013, the number of active BlackBerry users increased over time. In the fourth quarter of fiscal year ended March 3, 2012, RIM shipped 11.1 million BlackBerry smartphones, down 21 percent from the previous quarter and it was the first decline in the quarter covering Christmas since 2006. For its fourth quarter, RIM announced a net loss of US$125 million (the last loss before this occurred in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year 2005).[100] RIM's loss of market share accelerated in 2011, due to the rapidly growing sales of Samsung and HTC Android handsets; RIM's annual market share in the U.S. dropped to just 3 percent, from 9 percent.[101]
In the quarter ended June 28, 2012, RIM announced that the number of BlackBerry subscribers had reached 78 million globally.[102] Furthermore, RIM reported its first quarter revenue for the 2013 fiscal year, showing that the company incurred a GAAP net loss of US$518 million for the quarter, and announced a plan to implement a US$1 billion cost-saving initiative. The company also announced the delay of the new BlackBerry 10 OS until the first quarter of 2013.[103]
After the release of the Apple iPhone 5 in September 2012, RIM CEO Thorsten Heins announced that the number of global users was up to 80 million, which sparked a 7% jump in shares.[104] On December 2, 2012, the company reported a decline in the global subscriber base of BlackBerry to 79 million, after peaking at an all-time high of 80 million the previous quarter.[34] Later that same month, media reports confirmed that BlackBerry lost US$1.049 billion during the second fiscal quarter of 2013. In the wake of the loss, Heins stated: "We are very disappointed with our operational and financial results this quarter and have announced a series of major changes to address the competitive hardware environment and our cost structure."[105]
Between 2010 and 2013, the stock price of the company dropped by 87 percent due to the widespread popularity of the iPhone. Goldman Sachs estimated that, in June 2014, BlackBerry accounted for 1 percent share of smartphone sales, compared to a peak of around 20 percent in 2009.[31]
With the release of its financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2015 in June 2014, Chen presented a more stable company that had incurred a lower amount of loss than previous quarters. The New York Times described "a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss." Following the news release, Chen stated that BlackBerry was comfortable with its position, and it is understood that his plan for the company mainly involves businesses and governments, rather than consumers.[106]
The Astonishing Tribe
The Astonishing Tribe (TAT), a user interface design company based in Malmö, Sweden, was acquired by the company on December 2, 2010.[161][162] With a history of creating user interfaces and applications for mobile, TAT contributed heavily to the user experience of BlackBerry 10 as well as the development of its GUI framework, Cascades.
In July 2011, RIM brought on JayCut, a Sweden-based company that is an online video editor.[163] JayCut technology was incorporated into the media software of BlackBerry 10.[163]
In March 2012, RIM acquired Paratek Microwave,[164] bringing their adaptive RF Tuning technology into BlackBerry handsets.
On September 18, 2012, it was announced that the RIM social calendaring service,[165] Tungle.me would be shut down on December 3, 2012. RIM acquired Tungle.me in April 2011.[166]
In July 2011, RIM acquired NewBay, an Irish-based company that is an online video, pics and tool for media networks editor.[167] RIM subsequently sold NewBay to Synchronoss in December 2012 for $55.5 million.[168]
On June 7, 2011, Scoreloop was acquired by BlackBerry for US$71 million.[169][170] It provided tools for adding social elements to any game (achievements/rewards etc.) and was central to the BlackBerry 10's Games app. On December 1, 2014, all Scoreloop services were shut down.[171]
Gist was acquired in February 2011, by BlackBerry. Gist was a tool that helps users to organise and view all their contacts in one place. Gist's services closed down on September 15, 2012, in order for the company to focus on BlackBerry 10.[172]
BlackBerry Ltd. acquired Scroon in May 2013. The French startup manages Facebook, Twitter and other social-media accounts for large clients like luxury-good maker LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, wireless operator Orange SA (ORA) and Warner Bros. Entertainment. The deal was publicly announced in November 2013. According to Scroon founder, Alexandre Mars, he had not disclosed the purchase by BlackBerry before because of the "delicate media buzz" around the company. Scroon is part of BlackBerry's strategy to profit from the BlackBerry Messenger instant-messaging service by utilizing the newly unveiled BBM Channels. Financial terms were not disclosed.[173]
Movirtu was acquired in September 2014, by BlackBerry. Movirtu is a U.K. startup that allows multiple phone numbers to be active on a single mobile device. At the time of the acquisition BlackBerry announced they would expand this functionality beyond BlackBerry 10 to other mobile platforms such as Android and iOS.[174]
Secusmart was acquired in September 2014. The German-based company was one of the steps to position BlackBerry as the most secure provider in the mobile market. Secusmart had the agreement to equip the German Government with high secure mobile devices that encrypt voice as well as data on BlackBerry 10 devices. Those phones are currently in use by Angela Merkel and most of the ministers as well as several Departments and the Parliament.[175][non-primary source needed]
WatchDox was an Israel-based Enterprise File Synchronization and Sharing company which specialized in securing access to documents on a cloud basis. BlackBerry acquired the company in April 2015.[176] On December 8, 2016, BlackBerry renamed WatchDox to BlackBerry Workspaces.[177]
In August 2019, BlackBerry closed down its Israel development center.[178]
On July 22, 2015, BlackBerry announced that it had acquired AtHoc, a provider of secure, networked emergency communications.[179]
On September 4, 2015, BlackBerry announced the acquisition of mobile security provider Good Technology for $425 million.[180] On December 8, 2016, it rebranded Good's products and integrated them into the BlackBerry Enterprise Mobility Suite, a set of tiered software offerings for its enterprise customers.[181]
On February 24, 2016, BlackBerry acquired UK-based cyber security consultancy Encription.[182]
On November 16, 2018, Cylance was purchased for US$1.4 billion by BlackBerry Limited in an all cash deal.[183] The technology behind Cylance would enable BlackBerry to add artificial intelligence capabilities to its existing software products for IoT applications and other services. Cylance will run as a separate division within BlackBerry Limited's current operations.[184]
BlackBerry Unified Endpoint Manager (UEM)
An Enterprise Mobility Management platform that provides provisional and access control over smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktops with support for all major platforms including iOS, Android (including Android for Work and Samsung KNOX), BlackBerry 10, Windows 10, and Mac OS. UEM (formerly known as BES) also acts as a unified management console and server for BlackBerry Dynamics, BlackBerry Workspaces, and BlackBerry 2FA.[185]
Organizational changes
The company was often criticized for its dual CEO structure. Some saw this arrangement as a dysfunctional management structure and believed RIM acted as two companies, slowing the effort to release the new BlackBerry 10 operating system.[112][113] On June 30, 2011, an investor push for the company to split its dual-CEO structure was unexpectedly withdrawn after an agreement was made with RIM.[114]
In 2007, co-CEO Jim Balsillie was forced to resign as chairman as the company announced a $250 million earnings restatement relating to mistakes in how it granted stock options. Furthermore, an internal review found that hundreds of stock-option grants had been backdated, timed to a low share price to make them more lucrative.[115]
In January 2009, Canadian regulators stated that they were seeking a record penalty of US$80 million from the top two executives, co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis. Furthermore, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) pushed for Balsillie to pay the bulk of any penalty and relinquish his seat on RIM's board of directors for a period of time.[116] On February 5, 2009, several executives and directors of Research In Motion agreed to pay the penalties to settle an investigation into the backdating of stock options. The Ontario Securities Commission approved the arrangement in a closed-door meeting. Under the terms of a settlement agreement with the OSC, RIM co-chief executive officers Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, as well as chief operating officer Dennis Kavelman, jointly paid a total of C$68-million to RIM to reimburse the company for losses from the backdating and for the costs of a long internal investigation. The three were also required to pay C$9-million to the OSC. Balsillie resigned from RIM's board of directors temporarily and remained in his executive role.[117][118] In May 2010, almost immediately after the OSC sanctions expired, Balsillie was reappointed to the board in spite of strong shareholder objections.[119]
Lazardis and Balsillie resigned as co-CEOs in January 2012.[120] After years of tension, Balsille left the company entirely, stepping down from his executive role in March 2012.[121] Following their resignations, they were replaced by a single CEO - former co-COO Thorsten Heins.[122] Heins hired investment banks RBC Capital Markets and JP Morgan to seek out potential buyers interested in RIM, while also redoubling efforts on releasing BlackBerry 10.[44]
Following the assumption of role as CEO, Heins made substantial changes to the company's leadership team. Changes included the departures of Chief Technology Officer David Yach; Chief Operating Officer Jim Rowan;[123] Senior Vice President of Software Alan Brenner;[124] Chief Legal Officer, Karima Bawa;[125] and Chief Information Officer Robin Bienfait.[126]
Following the leadership changes, Heins hired Kristian Tear to assume the role of Chief Operating Officer, Frank Boulben to fill the Chief Marketing Officer role[125] and appointed Dan Dodge, the CEO of QNX, to take over as Chief Technology Officer.[127] On July 28, 2012, Steven E. Zipperstein was appointed as the new Vice President and Chief Legal Officer.[128]
On March 28, 2013, Lazaridis relinquished his position as vice chairman and announced his resignation from the board of directors.[129] Later in the year, Heins was replaced by John S. Chen, who assumed the CEO role in the first week of November. Chen's compensation package mainly consists of BlackBerry shares—a total of 13 million—and he will be entitled to the entire number of shares after he has served the company for five years. Heins received an exit package of $22 million.[130]
Chen has a reputation as a "turnaround" CEO,[131] turning the struggling enterprise software and services organization Sybase into enough of a success to sign a merger with SAP in 2010.[132] Chen was open about his plans for BlackBerry upon joining the company, announcing his intent to move away from hardware manufacturing to focus on enterprise software such as QNX, BlackBerry UEM, and AtHoc.[133][134][135]
In June 2011, RIM announced its prediction that Q1 2011 revenue would drop for the first time in nine years, and also unveiled plans to reduce its workforce.
In July 2011, the company cut 2,000 jobs, the biggest lay-off in its history and the first major layoff since November 12, 2002, when the company laid off 10% of its workforce (200 employees).[136] The lay-off reduced the workforce by around 11%, from 19,000 employees to 17,000.[137]
On June 28, 2012, the company announced a planned workforce reduction of 5,000 by the end of its fiscal 2013, as part of a $1 billion cost savings initiative.[103]
On July 25, 2013, 250 employees from BlackBerry's research and development department and new product testing were laid off. The layoffs were part of the turnaround efforts.[138]
On September 20, 2013, BlackBerry confirmed that the company will have a massive layoff of 4,500 employees by the end of 2013. This would be approximately 40 percent of the company's workforce.[139]
BlackBerry had at its peak about 20,000 employees. After CEO John Chen joined BlackBerry in 2013 there were additional layoffs in February 2015 to compete with smartphones, at which point the total employees numbered 6,225. On July 21, 2015, BlackBerry announced an additional layoff of an unspecified number of employees,[140] with another 200 laid off in February 2016.[141]
As of February 2022[update], the company had 3,225 employees.[2]
The BlackBerry OS was intended to operate under much different, simpler conditions such as low powered devices, narrow network bandwidth, and high-security enterprises. However, the aging platform struggled with emerging trends like mobile web browsing, consumer applications, multimedia and touch screen interfaces. Users experienced performance issues, usability problems and instability.[26]
The company tried to enhance the old platform, but ultimately decided to build a new platform with QNX at its core.[112][7]
