Research in Motion is working overtime to try and regain the ground it lost over the last few months with many corporate clients jumping ship to other smartphones. The company has announced that it will be releasing the newest version of their OS, Blackberry 10. The company plans to release 2,000 prototype phones, which will be given to select developers who will attend the Blackberry 10 Jam conference set for May this year in Orlando, Florida.
The Blackberry 10 Jam is an event that aims to give developers an insight into the new OS and give them a better idea on how to develop applications for it in time for its launch later this year. The event is quite anticipated but no one knew that an actual working device will actually be ready for use, much less shown.
This move to include developers in the mix is a big departure for RIM. Previously, the company only considered third party developers as secondary players to the main features that RIM develops for the Blackberry OS. But with its market share slipping, the company may have realized that the future is in apps and it is a good move to involve developers early on in the development process. It remains to be seen, however, if RIM has made the decision early enough to be able to halt its slipping market share or if it is a classic case of “too little, too late.”
Originally posted on March 26, 2012 @ 9:30 pm