2012 will be one of Research in Motion’s most challenging years yet, but it’s already making structural changes that will help bring the Blackberry brand back to prominence.
Of course, the most significant change for the company has already happened. The two men who shared the title co-CEO, as well as Board Chair, left in order to make way for a fresh face and new ideas.
Now, an independent review has come up with the suggestion that those two positions should not be given to the same individual or individuals. In fact, the Board Chair should from now on always be someone who is not a RIM employee.
For RIM, everything lies in the fate of QNX, its brand new operating system that was built from the ground up. It was first introduced on the Playbook tablet. Bringing that interface to the Blackberry smartphone line could give it a much needed boost.
However, the first phones to get the new OS won’t be here until at least six or seven months from now. By then, Nokia’s partnership with Windows Phone will be in its maturity and the dominance of Android and iOS will only continue to grow on a global scale.
Until then, RIM has to rely on its existing Blackberry software, which still has roots that date back to the early 2000s. There is no room for a platform like that in today’s mobile climate.
