Will the New Blackberry Save RIMM?

The company responsible for the creation of the Blackberry has steadily lost its place in the market for the last two years. Will that downward trend change with the new BB10 smartphone, slated for release at the end of January?

The Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency, will be testing the new smartphone. This news caused RIMM’s stock to be up over 6 percent on the news. This is a good indicator for the struggling company that has lost about 75 percent of its value since 2010.
RIMM was once a pioneer and leader in the smartphone market, but has since been displaced by the innovations of Apple and Google. Even the most loyal have been moving towards other phones.
Security

Blackberry phones have long been known for their security, which is why they once were popular with agencies and businesses. The company has said that the new line will also be faster and operate more smoothly than previous models.

The ICE has been one of the Blackberry supporters but had made an announcement in October to switch to the iPhone. This would mean changes for about 17,600 employees. However, it has now agreed to test the BB10 upon its release.

The new device has already received clearance from the Federal information Processing Standard 140-2 certification. This is a minimum standard for government agencies with the products they use and it is the first time a Blackberry has received the certification prior to launch.

This news, along with the promised launch of the new device has spurred the RIMM shares to move upward. The stock has doubled since late in September, showing investors feelings about the

possible value of the new BB10 for the company. Of course, we have to wait until the product ships in late January to see customers’ reaction to know if this is good news for the long term.

[Image via currenteditorials]