BlackBerry

This article is about the brand of electronic devices. For its parent company, see BlackBerry Limited. For the film, see BlackBerry (film). For the fruit, see Blackberry. For other uses, see Blackberry (disambiguation).

BlackBerry
Final logo used since 2004 before shutdown in January 2022
Three BlackBerry devices in comparison
DeveloperBlackBerry Limited (1999–2016)
BB Merah Putih (Indonesia; 2016–2019)
Optiemus Infracom (India; 2017–2018)
TCL Corporation (Worldwide; 2016–2020)
OnwardMobility (Enterprise; 2020–2022)
ManufacturerCurrent:
Optiemus Infracom (South Asia)
FIH Mobile (Enterprise)
Former:
BlackBerry Limited
TCL (Worldwide)
BB Merah Putih (Indonesia)
TypeHandheld devices
Release dateJanuary 19, 1999; 25 years ago (1999-01-19)
DiscontinuedJanuary 4, 2022; 2 years ago (2022-01-04)
Operating systemAndroid
Former:
BlackBerry 10
BlackBerry OS
Online servicesBlackBerry World, Google Play Store, BlackBerry Messenger
Websiteblackberry.com/us/en/products/devices

BlackBerry was a maker of smartphones and other related mobile services and devices. The line was originally developed and maintained by the Canadian company BlackBerry Limited (formerly known as Research In Motion, or RIM) from 1999 to 2016, after which it was licensed to various companies.[1]

Specializing in secure communications and mobile productivity, BlackBerry was once well known for the keyboards on most of its devices and software services that ran through its own servers.[2] At its peak in September 2011, there were 85 million BlackBerry subscribers worldwide.[3][4] However, BlackBerry lost its dominant position in the market due to the success of the Android and iOS platforms; its numbers had fallen to 23 million in March 2016, a decline of almost three-quarters.

On September 28, 2016, BlackBerry Limited announced it would cease designing its own BlackBerry devices in favor of licensing to partners to design, manufacture, and market.[5] The original licensors were BB Merah Putih for the Indonesian market, Optiemus Infracom for the South Asian market, and BlackBerry Mobile (a trade name of TCL Technology) for all other markets.[6][7]

Historically, BlackBerry devices used a proprietary operating system—known as BlackBerry OS—developed by BlackBerry Limited. In 2013, BlackBerry introduced BlackBerry 10, a major revamp of the platform based on the QNX operating system. BlackBerry 10 was meant to replace the aging BlackBerry OS platform with a new system that was more in line with the user experiences of Android and iOS platforms. In 2015, BlackBerry began releasing Android-based smartphones, beginning with the BlackBerry Priv.

BlackBerry, a comedy-drama film about the rise and fall of BlackBerry, was released in 2023.

  1. ^ "RIM Company – Learn about Research in Motion". RIM. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  2. ^ Technica, John Timmer, Ars. "The End of BlackBerry Phones Is Finally, Truly Here". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved December 3, 2022.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ "BlackBerry Subscribers 2014". Boy Genius Report. June 28, 2013.
  4. ^ Colapinto, John (October 3, 2011). "Famous Names". The New Yorker. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  5. ^ Foxx, Chris (September 28, 2016). "Blackberry stops designing own phones". BBC News.
  6. ^ Mobile, BlackBerry (February 3, 2020). "pic.twitter.com/jhcfVHjVqL". @BBMobile. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  7. ^ "TCL won't make BlackBerry phones anymore, sending the brand back into Noncé limbo". www.digitaltrends.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2020. Retrieved February 4, 2020.