RIM Ordered to Pay Up

Can RIM recover from this?

A federal jury in San Francisco has found Blackberry maker Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM) liable for $147.2 million in damages for infringing on patents held by Mformation Technologies Inc.

Mformation, of Edison, N.J., sued Research in Motion in October 2008, alleging that Canada-based RIM infringed on its 1999 invention for remotely managing wireless devices. Mformation’s software allows companies to remotely access employee cell phones to do software upgrades, change passwords or to wipe data from phones that have been stolen.

Officials at RIM, which has been struggling with plummeting sales, a declining stock and other problems, did not provide a comment Saturday.

Thakur said the jury ruled that Research in Motion should pay his client $8 for each of the 18.4 million Blackberrys that were connected to the Blackberry Enterprise Server, from the day the lawsuit was filed until the time of the trial. That’s a total of $147.2 million.

This is a huge hit for RIM.

Dozens Trampled in Indonesia in Rush for Blackberry Phones

Can't see this happening in the States, but the race for Blackberries was evidently similar to the running of the bulls yesterday in Indonesia.

Dozens of people suffered minor injuries as many hundreds of impatient BlackBerry fans broke through a barricade to get their hands on the latest smartphone during a discount promotion in a Jakarta mall on Friday.

As the crowd swelling to well in excess of a thousand people — a number of whom had been queuing since the previous day — rumors began circulating on Friday morning that the BlackBerry Bellagio, also known as a BlackBerry Bold 9790, had sold out during the event at Pacific Place mall in South Jakarta.

This and impatience and frustration caused the crowd to surge forward through a barrier that was supposed to hold crowds back.

In the ensuing crush, at least 90 people passed out, while three suffered broken bones.  More that 200 security and police were called into to control the crowds.

The good news in all of this, is some people still want to own a Blackberry.

Is the Blackberry Brand on Life Support?

They may not be on life support yet, but they are heading in that direction.

Shares of Research in Motion, Ltd (RIM) dropped 21.5% to their lowest level since 2006 on Friday after the BlackBerry smartphone maker said quarterly revenue might drop for the first time in nine years and unveiled plans to reduce jobs.

Revenue will be $4.2 billion to $4.8 billion in the fiscal second quarter, RIM said Thursday. That was less than the average analyst estimate for sales of $5.47 billion, according to a Bloomberg survey. Profit this quarter will be 75 cents to $1.05 a share. Analysts had predicted $1.40.

RIM is losing market share in the U.S. to Apple's iPhone and handsets running Google's Android software, in part because it hasn't introduced a major new BlackBerry model since last August. Cheaper Google phones are also making inroads in Latin America, Asia and Europe, threatening the popularity of less-expensive BlackBerry models like the Curve.

RIM, based in Waterloo, Ontario, plunged $7.58, or 21.5%, to $27.75, the lowest level since Sept. 12, 2006. The stock has dropped 52% this year.

"Its product portfolio is just not up to snuff with its key competitors," said Paul Taylor, chief investment officer at BMO Harris Private Banking in Toronto.

RIM has come under increasing scrutiny from investors after its stock slumped, the company lost phone market share, and its new PlayBook tablet computer, a rival to Apple's iPad, was criticized by technology columnists for poor performance and being rushed to market.

Last week, investor Northwest & Ethical Investments called for RIM to separate the roles of chairman and chief executive as analysts question whether RIM's co-CEO structure is the best way to manage the company.

Blackberry's Playbook will hit Sub $500 Price Point

RIM's Blackberry PlayBook will be introduced in the spring of next year and at a price point below $500, its co-CEO Jim Balsillie detailed to several news outlets on Wednesday.

RIM intends to compete with Apple's iPad in one of tech's fastest growing sectors by pricing it close to the now top-selling tablet.

The Blackberry device will have a 1GHz dual-core processor, front and rear-facing cameras, HTML5 and Flash support, HD video support, and HD video output.

The first PlayBooks would only have Wi-Fi capabilities for Internet connectivity, although it said at launch 3G and 4G models would follow shortly afterwards. The device would run a tablet based OS, that while similar in its user interface, would not be developed by RIM but rather operating system developer and subsidiary QNX.

The Playbook will launch in early 2011.  No carrier partners have been announced as of yet.

It's going to be difficult, but RIM has a chance if the price is below the magical $500 mark.