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RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

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Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#21

Post by andrewpi »

cleaver wrote: post #14
recoiledsnake wrote: post #9

This is really sad. Their dev tools were really horrible though and they weren't able to come out from their nice of mail and messaging which other smartphones started doing as well if not better leading to a BYOD(Bring your own device) culture at the workplace. Who wants to carry two phones and keep them charged? On the bright side, they're still making money with a steady and increasing BIS revenue stream, BBM is g…

I looked at doing BB development when it was it's prime. It was too expensive to get into and the cost of a BB enterprise server was prohibitive for a amall shop.

It's been a while since I've looked into it, but last I looked, all the required tools were free/open-source, and the only requirement to be a BlackBerry developer is/was a $20 signing key.

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#22

Post by icki »

recoiledsnake wrote: post #9

This is really sad. Their dev tools were really horrible though and they weren't able to come out from their nice of mail and messaging which other smartphones started doing as well if not better leading to a BYOD(Bring your own device) culture at the workplace. Who wants to carry two phones and keep them charged? On the bright side, they're still making money with a steady and increasing BIS revenue stream, BBM is g…

BB10 has the WebWorks platform for HTML5/CSS/JS ninjas and Cascades which makes writing with the Native SDK a breeze (coming from a current Android dev who is really considering the switch).

https://developer.blackberry.com/cascades/ https://developer.blackberry.com/html5/

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#23

Post by DigitalSea »

I find it ironic that a company called Research In Motion is going backwards as a company rather than forwards. People seem to be championing the fall of RIM and although it is their fault for being an arrogant player in the enterprise sector, it's sad to see them fail like this. While they're not dead yet, it is probably bound to happen eventually unless RIM is taken in a new direction by a CEO with balls to be a leader and not a follower trying to mimic the success of Apple's iPhone like everyone seems to be doing.

I also find it disturbing that tech outlets like Apple Insider, TechCrunch and a few other majors are basically cheering that RIM is the way it is, it's sort of disgusting to see so many supposed experts in the technology journalist field so happy to see a company like RIM fail. Arrogance aside, RIM still make great products, they just need to adapt to the changing market a bit better, ask people what they want.

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#24

Post by dmix »

phillmv wrote: post #13

I wish they weren't failing. I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if thousands of Waterloo grads suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly looking for a job, somewhat cooling down the Canadian developer job market.

Do we even know its engineers getting laid off?

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#25

Post by Gustomaximus »

recoiledsnake wrote: post #9

This is really sad. Their dev tools were really horrible though and they weren't able to come out from their nice of mail and messaging which other smartphones started doing as well if not better leading to a BYOD(Bring your own device) culture at the workplace. Who wants to carry two phones and keep them charged? On the bright side, they're still making money with a steady and increasing BIS revenue stream, BBM is g…

With the lack of apps I feel no sympathy. I was working on and off with a company trying to get a well known app onto their store. Because of onerous T&C's that essentially said they had rights to revenue we made in app, our lawyers asked us to have this clause amended. Initially I thought no problem, we have done this a bunch of times and it is usually a quick turnaround. It took over 2 years of faffing about and was by far the worst app store experience I had to deal with.

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#26

Post by Danieru »

codedivine wrote: post #19

As a sidenote, all the cheering and celebration that goes on in the techpress when a company dies is somewhat disgusting. I don't understand why a large section of tech industry wants RIM or Nokia etc to fail. I would rather them see them succeed, see them build something cool and have more and fun things to play with. edit: I think we can safely conclude that hackers are about as human and as fallible as any other g…

Except these layoffs are not what killed the company.

The company has been dead for a while, reality is just slow to adjust.

Do not think of it as a company dieing but rather thousands of brilliant souls being released from enslavement.

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#27

Post by GoodIntentions »

aclements18 wrote: post #18
icki wrote: post #7

Every single one of these articles has provided no sources for these layoff figures. Sure, many of the C-Level's and SVP's have been leaving their Waterloo coop, but isn't it expected when the company has recently suffered under the current management? Surely RIM still needs it's employees to support BB7 (with devices still being launched globally [1]), while also building BB10 their next-gen OS. Sure, their might be…

Seems very feasible if they are positioning themselves to be acquired. With 40% of your workforce gone you no longer have a business, you just have a bunch of assets. I would be surprised if they are still and independent, publicly traded company by the end of 2012. Unfortunate, they had a lot of smart people working for them, but the dual-ceo structure ensured they would never be decisive enough to take big risks on…

>> With 40% of your workforce gone you no longer have a business, you just have a bunch of assets.

Some people might argue you have 40% less assets. ( But I get where you're coming from.. )

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#28

Post by mtgx »

codedivine wrote: post #19

As a sidenote, all the cheering and celebration that goes on in the techpress when a company dies is somewhat disgusting. I don't understand why a large section of tech industry wants RIM or Nokia etc to fail. I would rather them see them succeed, see them build something cool and have more and fun things to play with. edit: I think we can safely conclude that hackers are about as human and as fallible as any other g…

Probably because this proves them right and the companies wrong, at the time when they refused to believe that iPhone or Android are threats to them. RIM has been very defiant about beliving that especially, but also Nokia for as long as they had their former CEO (about 4 years). "Finally failing" means that the companies were wrong, and the tech press was right all along about them, but the companies were too arrogant to admit it at the time, and now they suffer for it.

Re: RIM to cut 40% of workforce as another top exec resigns

#30

Post by mtgx »

cleaver wrote: post #12
siculars wrote: post #2

I mean, "research" is in your name and I ask you what innovative research and development have you done lately? R.I.P. R.I.M.

I don't think they lack in research, or at least spending on research. I think the main thing they lack is a culture of innovation. They sat on their laurels as the market leader and they avoided cannibalizing any of their revenue streams.

That's a good point. Many companies are either too unfocused with their research, so whatever they are researching is almost completely irrelevant to their business, or even if they do invent something innovative, it's the managers who don't give the invention any chance for fear they might disrupt their current businesses.
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