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BlackBerry's BBM slingshots to top spot on Apple's App Store

But the app doesn't appear to be making much of a ripple in the Google Play store, and isn't listed in the top free apps list.

Roger Cheng Former Executive Editor / Head of News
Roger Cheng (he/him/his) was the executive editor in charge of CNET News, managing everything from daily breaking news to in-depth investigative packages. Prior to this, he was on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal for nearly a decade and got his start writing and laying out pages at a local paper in Southern California. He's a devoted Trojan alum and thinks sleep is the perfect -- if unattainable -- hobby for a parent.
Expertise Mobile, 5G, Big Tech, Social Media Credentials
  • SABEW Best in Business 2011 Award for Breaking News Coverage, Eddie Award in 2020 for 5G coverage, runner-up National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award for culture analysis.
Roger Cheng
Most interested users were greeted with a wait list when they installed BBM. Screenshot by Dan Graziano/CNET

BlackBerry Messenger fans new and old propelled the BBM app to the top of Apple's App Store just a day after its launch.

It is the No. 1 app on the App Store's free apps list. Curiously, as of Tuesday morning, the BBM app hasn't made the same impact on Android's Google Play store, where it isn't listed in the top free app category. But, we don't know how quickly Google Play updates its top free apps list.

It was clear yesterday that BBM was seeing significant demand when BlackBerry instituted a "wait list" that allowed users to download and install the app, but wait until they got an e-mail notification before they could start firing off messages. Only users who had registered on BBM.com beforehand were able to get in immediately.

Within eight hours of its debut, BlackBerry tweeted that it had reached 5 million downloads on Apple's iOS and Android. The company had said 6 million people had registered to get the BBM app.

It's been a bumpy ride for BBM, which was supposed to launch last month. It was delayed when an unofficial version leaked, and shortly after pulled.

BBM has been a rare bright spot for a company that recently retreated from the consumer market, focusing largely on big business and government customers with its devices and network services.