What a fall for a once high flying company. BlackBerry once represented the very cutting edge of mobile technology, that little device with a cartoonishly miniature keyboard somehow managed to change how entire segments of the workforce went about the daily lives. Becoming a “crackberry” was seen as a necessary badge of honor by those who harbored any desires of one day conquering the corporate jungle.
Then it all came crashing down. In retrospect it wasn’t quite the slow downward draft that’s sometimes been described, but rather it all happened in one fell swoop on June 29, 2007. That was the day Steve Jobs held up the very first iPhone and showed the world his latest and soon to be greatest creation. BlackBerry certainly did not flinch on that day, or the next for that matter, or as its turned out very much ever since then. The company continued to churn out its stalwart, tried and tested products that were so beloved by big, safe institutions, but ignored by consumers. The company seems to have been blindsided by the fact that people run corporations, and that they’re consumers first, corporate clients second.
Their lack of imagination has certainly cost them dearly. In recent years, they’ve pretty much all but tried everything. Nothing has worked. BlackBerry apps are about as popular as a BlackBerry diet. The sleekest blackberry phones are about as attractive as a prostitute with missing teeth. In an effort to not make the same mistake twice, they released the BlackBerry playbook soon after the iPad’s debut, but forgot to build something usable. The reviews have been harsh, sales have been even harsher. And last week, the final death march begun. The company announced earnings that were far below their own estimates, and just to add insult to injury, they also reported delays to the very products they need to work their way out of this mess. So, just like many that have come before, BlackBerry seems to be a company whose 15 minutes are up and the countdown has begun...
Then it all came crashing down. In retrospect it wasn’t quite the slow downward draft that’s sometimes been described, but rather it all happened in one fell swoop on June 29, 2007. That was the day Steve Jobs held up the very first iPhone and showed the world his latest and soon to be greatest creation. BlackBerry certainly did not flinch on that day, or the next for that matter, or as its turned out very much ever since then. The company continued to churn out its stalwart, tried and tested products that were so beloved by big, safe institutions, but ignored by consumers. The company seems to have been blindsided by the fact that people run corporations, and that they’re consumers first, corporate clients second.
Their lack of imagination has certainly cost them dearly. In recent years, they’ve pretty much all but tried everything. Nothing has worked. BlackBerry apps are about as popular as a BlackBerry diet. The sleekest blackberry phones are about as attractive as a prostitute with missing teeth. In an effort to not make the same mistake twice, they released the BlackBerry playbook soon after the iPad’s debut, but forgot to build something usable. The reviews have been harsh, sales have been even harsher. And last week, the final death march begun. The company announced earnings that were far below their own estimates, and just to add insult to injury, they also reported delays to the very products they need to work their way out of this mess. So, just like many that have come before, BlackBerry seems to be a company whose 15 minutes are up and the countdown has begun...
