BlackBerry fights to stay alive with rumored 40% cut in workforce

The end may be near for the smartphone pioneer.

With reports coming in that BlackBerry (formerly Research in Motion) may be cutting nearly half of their global workforce, our assertion that “RIM is dying” may be coming more rapidly than expected.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that BlackBerry is gearing up for staff cutbacks across all departments, which should affect “several thousand employees,” based on information provided by its sources.

Overall, the beleaguered Canadian phone maker is expected to slash its workforce by as much as 40 percent before the end of the year.