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IBM has eyes on RIM enterprise-services unit, report says

Research In Motion has been approached by IBM to discuss a possible sale of the BlackBerry maker's enterprise-services division, a new report claims.

IBM has so far held informal discussions about picking up RIM's enterprise-services division, which includes the network that powers its e-mail platform, among other software, Bloomberg is reporting today, citing sources. According to Bloomberg's sources, IBM has made it clear to RIM that it doesn't want to acquire the entire company.

RIM has said publicly that it believes it can turn things around, despite plummeting device sales and rampant delays that have pushed … Read more

RIM wins reversal in $147.2 million Mformation patent case

Research In Motion has succeeded in getting overturned a verdict that would have forced it to pay $147.2 million in patent-infringement damages to mobile device management company Mformation.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California has overturned a trial verdict and granted RIM's "motion for judgment as a matter of law." According to RIM, the court found that the evidence in the case did not adequately support the jury's verdict.

"We appreciate the judge's careful consideration of this case. RIM did not infringe on Mformation's patent and we … Read more

RIM-Samsung BlackBerry 10 licensing talks back on, analyst says

Research In Motion could be attempting to hold discussions with Samsung over the prospect of the handset maker licensing its BlackBerry 10 operating system.

In a note to investors today, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek said he believes that "RIM is attempting to revive discussions with Samsung regarding a BB10 licensing deal," according to All Things Digital, which obtained a copy of the note. Misek didn't say if discussions have kicked off yet and if so, how far he believes they have gone.

Rumors have been swirling for some time that Samsung and RIM have been holding talks. … Read more

Developers are apparently fleeing BlackBerry

Things never seem to look up for Research In Motion these days. So perhaps it's no surprise that a new report from All Things D's John Paczkowski has found that RIM is "bleeding developers."

Citing a recent survey of 200 developers (from a sample set of 4,300) by Baird Equity Research, Paczkowski wrote that developer interest in working on BlackBerry OS versions 7 and 10 are at a n all time low.

Baird researchers polled developer sentiment towards all major mobile platforms based on a 10-point scale with 10 marked as "excellent" and … Read more

RIM faces angry investors, searches for new board

Troubled BlackBerry maker Research In Motion faced shareholders at its annual meeting today, where it voted to keep its existing board of directors. But the company also confirmed that it's using a professional search firm to help it find more-qualified board members.

RIM Chairwoman Barbara Stymiest answered a question from RIM shareholder Vic Alboini, CEO of Jaguar Financial, asking whether RIM has hired a search firm to help it find better-qualified board members. Stymiest confirmed that the company is conducting a search.

RIM shareholders approved the 10 members of the board who were currently standing for re-election. But shareholders &… Read more

RIM CEO Heins: 'I'm not happy with the situation at RIM'

Research In Motion CEO Thorsten Heins isn't too pleased with where his company stands at the moment.

"I'm not happy with the situation at RIM either," Heins said in response to a question posed to him by CIO.com in an interview published yesterday. "Who can be happy and satisfied with where we are?"

Such discontent is understandable. Over the last year alone, the company's shares are down nearly 74 percent. The decline is due to investor concern that plummeting BlackBerry sales and major layoffs are signs that even more trouble is on … Read more

The near future of smartphones (Smartphones Unlocked)

High-flying skydive stunts! Steering-wheel voice commands! Predictive search that knows your life! That was June for us, one big sneak peek of the mobile platform future, a flurry of OS features and software specs that Apple, Google, Microsoft, and RIM lobbed at us from San Francisco area events all in the same month. It was so busy around here, we CNETers dubbed the month "Junesanity."

The specs that emerged from these four events are a peek at the near future of mobile phones. In addition, the flashy presentations were designed to win developers and consumers to each company'… Read more

RIM shares plummet as investors worry about the future

The bad news just keeps coming for Research In Motion.

In early trading today, the company's shares have shaved off 17 percent to land at $7.55. The trading is the first chance for investors to offer up their opinion on the company's bleak fiscal first-quarter earnings that made many wonder if the end is near.

RIM's shares ended the day down 19 percent to $7.39.

During its fiscal first quarter, RIM lost a whopping $518 million, a catastrophic decline compared to the $695 million profit it posted during the same period last year. Quarterly sales … Read more

RIM earnings preview: Bleak, disappointing, 'terrible'

It's no secret that Research In Motion is in deep trouble. But most analysts expect the company to only further prove that point later today.

After the market closes, RIM will announce its fiscal first-quarter earnings, which consensus among Wall Street analysts pegs at a net loss of 3 cents per share on $3.1 billion in revenue. During the same period last year, RIM posted a profit of $1.33 per share on nearly $5 billion in revenue.

As one might expect, the more bearish analysts out there have been chiming in on their expectations for RIM's … Read more