For RIM, you are what you eat. The latest twist for tumbling company Research in Motion, they’ve chosen to change their name and branding to reflect who they really are. Instead of being the once-proud RIM brand, they will be known simply as “BlackBerry” going forward. This is a good move. It focuses all attention on the one thing that has a chance of keeping everyone in the company employed: a successful BlackBerry 10 launch. This is their last chance. If they cannot recapture some of the market that they’ve been hemorrhaging for a while, particularly in the business sector, than they will not be…

  Blackberry news blog N4BB has published what is believed to be the first image of the Blackberry 10 L-Series smartphone. It looks legitimate as there is no handset that matches this look and feel of the screen. If so, it’s both good and bad news for Blackberry fans. On one hand, it seems to have the simplicity and “to the point” set of apps that traditional Blackberry users will enjoy. On the other hand, it does not have enough oomph to be able to compete with the iPhone or Android. Even those who are looking for an alternative will likely flock to the upcoming Windows 8 phones with their unique UI….

Blackberry Keyboard via Shutterstock In some ways, it’s simply a matter of circumstance. In others, it was missteps on their part that have contributed to their slow demise. Research In Motion is in the kind of deep trouble that companies as dominant as they were not too long ago rarely find themselves in so quickly. In an exclusive interview with CIO, RIM CEO Thorsten Heins breaks down the state of the company and the future of BlackBerry. Here’s a quote that exemplifies much of what is happening: “What also happened, in the U.S., was the drive to 4G started, and it got accelerated. Carriers were…

Research In Motion has been the whipping post for tech bloggers for a couple of years, now. We’ve taken our own swipes at them here (and here, and here, and here), but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a smidgen of hope coming from the Blackberry maker. The hope is being broadcast loud and clear by CEO Thorsten Heins who was claiming on Tuesday that “there’s nothing wrong with the company as it exists right now.” Blackberry 10, which many consider to be the last chance RIM has of regaining a bigger slice of the pie and staying in business as they are now beyond 2013, was delayed again last week. 5000 layoffs…

Here’s how it all breaks down: It doesn’t take an astute observer to realize that RIM is dying. It takes even less knowledge of the mobile industry to know that Microsoft desperately wants to compete and excel in phone and tablets. Both companies have problems that are best represented by two companies: Apple and Google. Why doesn’t Research In Motion simply sell at any cost to Microsoft? They are losing executives and cutting employees. No measure of restructuring can save their plummeting market share or improve their dismal outlook. They need help in a big way. Microsoft needs to make some moves….

There was an exchange between James T. Kirk and Spock regarding a proposed bailout of the beleaguered Klingon Empire. Kirk: Don’t believe them. Don’t trust them. Spock: They are dying. Kirk: Let them die. Today, the Klingons in question do not have boney ridges on their foreheads. They have no cloaking devices or batleths in their arsenal. The only real similarity between Research In Motion (RIM) and the Klingon Empire is the thought that, “perhaps today is a good day to die.” For the 5th consecutive quarter, RIM missed their earnings estimate. This prompted chopping at the top with former co-CEO…

First and foremost, RIM is dying. Anyone with knowledge of their situation knows that they have already lost the war against Apple, Google, and even Microsoft when it comes to being a player in the mobile device industry even if they still have a substantial chunk of the market. Recent reports indicate that they were approached by Amazon and others to help them get back on track but passed on the offers. “They have had approaches from folks who have wanted to have discussions,” said one head of technology investment banking at a Wall Street bank. “The issue is it is hard to find a value that makes sense…

In lieu of a refund or cash considerations, Research In Motion (RIM) is offering an apps package normally valued at around $100 to compensate for the most major outage the company has ever had. The three-day+ outage likely presented major challenges for the business-heavy Blackberry users who often rely on the devices to stay connected while on the go. “You expect better of us, I expect better of us” RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis said in last week’s press conference. Now, we’ll see if users expected to be compensated more for the outage. Enterprise customers will also receive a free month of tech…

The drive towards domination of the smartphone market continues for Apple and Google as they approach a combined 70% choke hold. Symbian is all but non-existent, holding on to just under 2%. Microsoft has been unable to break the 6% barrier but hopes that they will be able to do so with the release of Windows 8. RIM is still in the race, though hope is growing dim. Still, they are over 20%, a mark that most expected them to sink below in the most recent report. Blackberry has lost 4% since April….

For the past couple of years, we have been waiting to see whether Research in Motion, the makers of the Blackberry, could rise to meet the challenge of iOS and, later, Android. And for a while, we were hopeful. Looking at RIM’s past and brand loyalty, there was much reason to believe they would succeed despite Apple and Google’s onslaughts. But yesterday, two news stories came out that were symbols of RIM’s (probably permanent) decline. The first was that Apple has enough cash to buy the entire mobile phone industry. The second was that RIM themselves have halved their internal projections for their…