Will Research In Motion Ever Catch a Break?
One day after co-CEO Jim Balsillie gave a keynote address in Dubai -- to announce an innovation that, frankly, isn't very innovative -- Research In Motion's (NAS: RIMM) network suffered an outage that spanned across two continents. As a result, the stock closed down marginally on a day when the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI) soared nearly 3%.
Though the specific number of those affected is unknown at this point, the UK's Guardian newspaper put the total in the "tens of millions" across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
The timing couldn't have been worse. Not only was Balsillie in an affected region the day prior, but also his unveiling of a forthcoming software service called Tag describes an old feature available in other phones as "innovation" for BlackBerry users.
But you wouldn't know it at first. Tag uses near-field communications (NFC) technology -- noticeably absent from Apple's (NAS: AAPL) latest iPhone -- to share contact info, documents, and media quickly. Just gently bump two BlackBerry handsets together to complete a data transfer.
Sounds cool, right? It would be if it were new. Instead, a company called Bump Technologies has been providing an app for both iOS and Google's (NAS: GOOG) Android that performs essentially the same function using the cloud and algorithms to match phone signatures.
As glitches go, neither the outage nor the lateness of Tag matters much. Rather, it's what these events represent -- first, that despite market-share losses to both iOS and Android, Research In Motion can't handle the capacity it has; and second, that there's so little innovation at RIM nowadays that a years-old iPhone app passes for improvement.
Too harsh? Perhaps. I've been pretty tough on RIM -- but that's only because the company operates in a tough market with tough competitors, including Apple, Google, Microsoft (NAS: MSFT) and Nokia (NYS: NOK) . Mistakes cost more in an environment like that. Come next quarter, we may find that the price for this week's flubs is even higher than skeptics like me assume.
Do you agree? Disagree? Please weigh in using the comments box below. You can also keep tabs on the mechanics of the mobile market by adding any of these stocks to your Foolish watchlist:
Add Apple to My Watchlist.
Add Google to My Watchlist.
Add Microsoft to My Watchlist.
Add Nokia to My Watchlist.
Add Research In Motion to My Watchlist.
At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributorTim Beyersis a member of theMotley Fool Rule Breakersstock-picking team. He owned shares of Apple and Google at the time of publication. Check out Tim'sportfolio holdingsandFoolish writings, or connect with him onGoogle+or Twitter, where he goes by@milehighfool. You can also get his insightsdelivered directly to your RSS reader.The Motley Fool owns shares of Microsoft, Apple, and Google.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended buying shares of Apple, Microsoft, and Google, as well as creating bull call spread positions in Microsoft and Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter servicesfree for 30 days. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe thatconsidering a diverse range of insightsmakes us better investors. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2011 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
