Blackberry losses force rethink

The makers of the Blackberry handset, RIM (Research in Motion), have posted a loss of US$ 125 million following a profit of US 934 million for the same period a year earlier, as the opposition in the smartphone market has intensified and manufacturers have stepped up their game to catch up with Apple products.

Blackberry had acheived world dominance by offering a product that filled a gap in the business sector, based around the ability to receive and send emails on the move but gradually their competitors offered this also and  Blackberry failed to capitalise on the lead it had.

However, Blackberry intends to focus on the corporate area where it had trememendous global success and still has a loyal following, though they no longer have the monopoly here they once enjoyed and other handsets are equally as good at email management.

Overall RIM turned in a profit of US$ 1.2 billion, substantially lower than expected, against the previous year's figures of US$3.4 billion and their share price remains under extreme pressure, having lost over three quarters of their value in the past year.