I sat at my computer in amazement a little earlier. Most of me knew that RIM is too damaged and too slow to pivot, and just too out of touch with its customers to know it actually has a chance. But, there was this small part of me that was genuinely excited for BlackBerry World’s announcements. Then I saw Thorston Heins start off the company’s most crucial keynote ever with Salesforce and Cisco. More →
Meg Whitman may have assumed the role of CEO with HP on Thursday after Leo Apotheker was ousted, but that does not mean the company’s plans to kill of its webOS operating system, possibly spin off its PC business and purchase Autonomy are going to change. “It does not signal a change in the strategy,” Whitman explained to Bloomberg on Thursday. “We are behind the actions that were taken on Aug. 18. We are firmly committed to Autonomy.” Still, Whitman’s appointment has pumped a bit of new faith into the market. “Although there could still be curve balls around these planned initiatives, we believe the company is now in better hands to deliver the consistency that investors deserve,” Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White said in a note to investors on Friday. Other analysts aren’t so sure Whitman is the driving force HP needs. “The board isn’t going to change the strategy and is going to continue down this path, which frankly was the fear,” Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore told Bloomberg. More →
We recently sat down with Verizon Wireless’ Chief Marketing Officer Marni Walden to discuss a wide range of topics — how Verizon went from smartphone zero to smartphone hero, the carrier’s colossal push that was a major catalyst for Android’s explosive growth, and even Verizon Wireless’ plans to take a leadership role with tablets just as it has with smartphones. We found it interesting that many phones are passed over when it comes to DROID branding, as that stamp of approval for only the best of the best. We covered Microsoft and RIM as well, and Ms. Walden even confirmed that Verizon Wireless will be launching three BlackBerry devices this year. The entire interview is after the break.
BGR Interview is a series of interviews and conversations with executives, influencers, tastemakers and innovators, covering the mobile and consumer electronics industries. More →
Best Buy on Thursday intends to reveal several aspects of its long-term strategy to drive its business forward. A key part of that strategy, according to the company, is to continue its all out assault on the mobile market. Best Buy revealed its intentions to open between 600 and 800 Best Buy Mobile stand-alone store locations in the U.S. over the next five years. The company also said it intends to double its $2 billion online business within three to five years, and it will open 400 to 500 new Five Star retail locations in China with the goal of doubling its $4 billion business over the next five years. Hit the break for the full press release. More →
Acer appears to have taken company founder and former CEO Stan Shih’s recent advice quite seriously. Late last month following news that Acer had lowered its guidance for the first quarter of 2011, Shih said Acer needed to overhaul its business if it hoped to remain competitive. He also noted that Acer should focus on improving its profit margin rather than becoming a leader in the PC market by shipment volume, as had been the company’s goal. Just two days later, Acer announced that its CEO, Gianfranco Lanci, was resigning from the company. Now, Acer’s interim CEO J. T. Wang said on Thursday that the company will indeed shift its focus away from shipment volume and will instead spend more time and money on research and development in an effort to deliver value and innovation to consumers. As an example, Wang said that Windows 8 and its support for ARM-based platforms would provide opportunities for new netbook and notebook designs. Wang also noted that while tablet sales will have an impact on sales of traditional computers, the devices’ impact on the market will not be dramatic enough to “kill” notebook computers or netbooks. More →
According to data released by The Nielson Company in March, Sony Ericsson’s share of the U.S. smartphone market is barely a blip on the radar. Apple and RIM combine to own more than half the market, HTC is coming up behind them with 19%, Motorola holds 11%, Samsung has a 7% share and Sony Ericsson sits somewhere in the “Other” category, grouped among an undefined number of nameless manufacturers that combine to share roughly 3% of the smartphone market in the U.S. But Sony Ericsson smartphones are preparing to invade American soil, and the company’s assault just started with a boob-stab.
Read on for our full feature including an exclusive interview with the creative team behind Sony Ericsson’s Xperia PLAY ads. More →
While we were at WES, we had the opportunity to sit down with RIM’s Antoine Boucher, Vice President, Accessories Integration. During our meeting, we were briefed on some upcoming BlackBerry accessories so we thought that we would share the goods with everyone. Hit the jump to read about what everyone’s favorite Waterloo-based smartphone company has in the pipeline. We promise you won’t be let down.
