Research in Motion Case Analysis

Tracy M. Cooper

RIM Case Analysis

NETW583

March 22, 2015

Research in Motion (RIM) is a Canadian company that was founded in 1984 by Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin. The company became known for being a leader in the manufacturing and wireless industry for its creation of the Blackberry device. The Blackberry was initially created as a mobile email messaging device which was intended to allow corporate users to be able to continue receiving email messages when away from their office. The device became so popular that it was later given voice and wireless capabilities allowing it to now act as a cell phone by which users could make and receive calls as well as surf the internet.

        Research in Motion (RIM), despite being a leader in the wireless industry in the late 1990’s, would begin to face many challenges in an effort to hold on to their place in the wireless industry with the introduction of many other wireless devices. Apple would prove to be its biggest competitor with the introduction of the first iPhone in 2007 (Moon, 2013). In an attempt to regain the attention of wireless users, RIM, would come back to introduce its “first touch screen phone in 2008, the Blackberry Storm” (Moon, 2013, para.13), which would turn out to be a disappointment with Blackberry customers. This is only the beginning of a string of many more disappointments to come with the company as it begins to lose steam and favor with its once devoted Blackberry users. The company would then decide to release a tablet, the Playbook, in 2011 in an effort to remain competitive in a now widening field of mobile devices (Moon, 2013). This too would turn out to be yet another disappointment as RIM begins to slide out of popularity with its users.  

        The loss of customer favoritism was not the only challenge faced by RIM as they had to face a legal battle over their intellectual rights to continue providing service to its millions of Blackberry customers. In 2002 RIM would be taken to court by a company called NTP which was a “patent holding company that was seeking a right to the company sales of blackberry devices until the year 2012 at which time the patents for the devices would expire” ("Intellectual Property: The Real," 2005, para.4). RIM was forced to pay NTP in this case and it proved to be a blow financially for the company. This, however, was a battle that could have been avoided had RIM applied for the license to the patent for their email service which at the time was providing service to millions of customers who could not afford to have a shutdown.