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“With more than a billion Android, iOS, and BlackBerry smartphones in the market, and no dominant mobile messaging platform, this is absolutely the right time to bring BBM to Android and iPhone customers”

Executive Vice President for BBM at BlackBerry Andrew Bocking in a Press Release on Wednesday September 19th 2013

Well it seems hell has finally frozen over. The much anticipated porting of BBM (Black Berry Messenger) to smartphones was announced on Wednesday September 19th 2013 and is set to take places on different days for two (2) very special Mobile Phone Operating Systems:

  • Google Android Ice Cream Sandwich and Google Android Jelly Bean on Saturday September 21st 2013

  • Apple iPhones running iOS 6 and iOS 7 on Sunday September 22nd 2013

It’ll be in the form of a freely downloadable App available on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store or you can just visit BBM on your phones Mobile Browser. In essence folks, Blackberry with this decision to let loose BBM, their crown jewel, they’ve created a Mobile Social Network to rival the likes of Snapchat, Ask.fm, Facebook owned Instagram and the top dog in Mobile Social Networks, WhatsApp as described in How to use WhatsApp on your Computer.

blackberry-10-z10-q10

This essentially confirms rumours that Blackberry’s spinning off its more profitable parts before a sale as they’re going Bankrupt as I’d long predicted in Apple iPhone boosts Jamaican smartphone usage as BB goes Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

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Diehard Blackberry fans, now a part of the “in-crowd” as described in How to Set Up a Prepaid or Postpaid Blackberry Plan on your BB for LIME or Digicel should be thrilled. Most likely on Thursday September 19th 2013 and the days to follow, they should be walking about New Kingston and the rest of Jamaica, which is officially Blackberry Country, with a sly smirk on their faces.

After all, Blackberry phones, despite the smartphone “smart crowd” hype, are not only the cheapest phones in their category but they’re the most durable. Truly, a testament to their manufacturing as concluded by the study in my article Android smartphones may be king in 2015AD, but RIM Blackberry quality shines.

Blackberry fans can dash aside any percolation of the notion that they need to get a smartphone as hinted at in How to transfer Phone Contacts and Data from your Blackberry to your Apple iPhone or Google Android smartphone or Tablet. By Monday, they’ll be able to talk to their long lost defectors and compadres who are toting smartphones. Blackberry’s machination of beating WhatsApp isn’t a pipe dream either as the stats are packed firmly in BBM’s favour:

  • 60 million monthly active users on BlackBerry alone

  • 10 billion BBM messages sent each day

  • 90 minutes per day using the BBM app

Combine that with the Global dominance of Google Android and the Brand appeal of the Apple iPhone that holding done the No. 2 spot both in the US and abroad, the fields are ripe for BBM to plant its tendrils and create legions of fans among long lost users. BBM can now introduce its super secure Mobile Social Network Platform to Legions of fans over the weekend, and introduce them to the PIN (Personal Identification Number) which eliminates the need to share phone numbers like WhatsApp, my pet peeve against the service’s convenience.

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Blackberry’s got more in store too for those who choose to hop across to the new Mobile Social Network, to quote from their Press Statement: “BBM will continue to evolve quickly. Later this year, BBM Channels will provide a forum for active, real conversations between you and the people, brands, celebrities, artists, service providers, communities and more, that matter to you”.

Despite this, Blackberry’s in dire straits. Their Blackberry Z10 and subsequent product launches have not fared well and the company’s facing bankruptcy with plans to cut staff by some 40%. I will thus declare this to be both a happy and a sad time for Blackberry’s fans and supporters as they set BBM on a course to fight against WhatsApp and create a new legion of fans once more for their secure Mobile Social Network!

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