So when I saw the headline this morning that RIM was doing a buyback, I was saddened. I've been a Blackberry user since 1997 or 1998. RIM has been a great company that has driven so much innovation in the past fifteen years that has made my life better and the lives of many others better. I have to believe that if they got aggressive, they could find uses for all of that cash they are sitting on. I wish they would do that instead of buying back their stock.via avc.com
Of course, it's probably just a coincidence that they announce this on the day that iPhone 4 goes on sale, to throngs of fans foaming at the mouth, lines down the block, stock-outs, etc. But Fred raises an interesting point about the future of RIM, and I have to agree wholeheartedly. If I were the kind of guy who traded individual securities, I would consider a short position in RIMM.
There are only two things keeping RIM afloat right now:
- Corporate security policies that mandate Blackberry usage
- iPhone's exclusivity on AT&T
Both things will end soon. The iPhone and Android devices continue to become more enterprise-friendly. Users will start to demand that their companies allow them the ability to bring their own devices to the office. For companies to stay competitive, they'll have to let employees use iPhones and Droids. And of course AT&T's exclusive strangle-hold on the iPhone is bound to run its course someday, and once Verizon gets its paws on the device, RIM's market share will drop like a rock.
The only people I know who have Blackberries are people whose companies mandate it, or who refuse to leave Verizon. Nobody has a Blackberry because they're passionate about its cool functions, or its cool apps. This is probably because, as the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, developers hate developing for the Blackberry.
After all, as I said yesterday, when was the last time RIM launched a new Blackberry, and fans were camped out overnight to get it?
UPDATE: Wow, I should have made that trade.
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