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BlackBerry Launches Twitter-Like BBM Channels

Posted by samzenpus on from the try-our-twitter dept.

judgecorp writes "BlackBerry has launched BBM Channels, a rather Twitter-like social network that runs on its BBM messaging system. Meanwhile the company had good news in the developing world: it is the second most popular phone in South Africa. From the article: 'The update is available for BBM users on BlackBerry 10 and some older BlackBerry smartphones, but it is promised that support will be added for iPhone and Android soon, with users of those platforms able to access the web version if they have a confirmed BlackBerry ID email address.'"

31 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. And for who? by Z00L00K · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Who's going to use that feature and who's going to read? Not even Twitter is showing a profit.

    --
    If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
  2. Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 2

    Meanwhile the company had good news in the developing world: it is the second most popular phone in South Africa.

    Good news everyone! We're the second-most popular phone in South Africa!

    Maybe next year they can be the fourth-most popular phone in Great Britain.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    1. Re:Professor Voice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      Say what you want about BlackBerry, but BBM is actually one of their strongest products. The strength comes from the fact that it's encrypted* and that it has confirmation of delivery and reading. I'm actually very happy that it's available on Android and iOS now.

      *encrypted in comparison to SMS. You can make up your own mind if the NSA or others have access to the messages.

    2. Re:Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      *encrypted in comparison to SMS. You can make up your own mind if the NSA or others have access to the messages.

      You can make up your own mind, but if you don't believe that they do when Blackberry has demonstrated the ability to give the authorities that data in some countries, and when the NSA has demonstrated the ability to lean on anyone within their sphere of influence, you're not using your brain. Of course, maybe you feel you have nothing to hide from the government and never will, in which case, more power to you I guess.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    3. Re:Professor Voice by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      I'd be happy if my company was doing either of those thngs. If companies threw in the towel just because they couldn't make it to number one blah blah blah.

      Long day. Couldn't be bothered to complete train of thought.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    4. Re:Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'd be happy if my company was doing either of those thngs. If companies threw in the towel just because they couldn't make it to number one blah blah blah.

      The problem here is one of economies of scale. You can't be successful both designing and building new smartphones and also spending assloads on marketing if you aren't also a leader in the market, because smartphones are expensive to design and produce. If you're making something with a small sunk cost, that's a valid comment. Smartphones aren't that thing. All those effectively no-name Chinese smartphone makers who turn them out cheap are doing so based on copying others' designs, they don't have to sink the cost on their own.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    5. Re:Professor Voice by Pi1grim · · Score: 2

      Every single messenger is encrypted in the way BBM is encrypted. (at least I hope everyone's learned how to use SSL). The protocol is proprietary, that means there's going to be some hassle to implement OTR for it (you know, the only true encryption - end-to-end).

    6. Re:Professor Voice by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

      If people have interest in a properly encrypted message exchange network, there's a funded kickstarted coming out shortly called Trsst.

    7. Re:Professor Voice by Nerdfest · · Score: 2

      They're not neccessarily copying designs, but they are jumping on board the economies of scale already established for the required components, plus also leveraging open-source for the OS.

    8. Re:Professor Voice by jbmartin6 · · Score: 1

      What does "a leader in the market" mean? Clearly you don't mean the top slot only, since there is already more than one smartphone maker. The parent used the term 'number one' so your point seems moot. Blackberry *is* a leader in the market, didn't you hear they are number two in South Africa? It's like saying 'one of the top somethings' well ANY of the things is 'one of the top' except the very bottom one. It all depends on where you draw that arbitrary line.

      --
      This posting is provided 'AS IS' without warranty of any kind, implied or otherwise.
    9. Re:Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      They're not neccessarily copying designs, but they are jumping on board the economies of scale already established for the required components, plus also leveraging open-source for the OS.

      Actually, many of them are literally copying designs. Down to the plastics. And they don't even have to copy them, they get to make their plastics in the same plant the official ones come out of. They do make them with inferior plastic in most cases, with predictable results.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    10. Re:Professor Voice by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

      True, but that's not unique to phones. Chinese companies have been doing that to all products.

    11. Re:Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      True, but that's not unique to phones. Chinese companies have been doing that to all products.

      Right, and if you can find where I claimed uniqueness, then you'll really have something.

      The Chinese have been copying so long and so avidly they are still known for copying flaws in machine tools.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    12. Re:Professor Voice by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      What does "a leader in the market" mean?

      The market is global and #2 in SA doesn't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy, mixed-up world. At least, not when you're as big as crackberry.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    13. Re:Professor Voice by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      Meanwhile the company had good news in the developing world: it is the second most popular phone in South Africa.

      Good news everyone! We're the second-most popular phone in South Africa!

      Maybe next year they can be the fourth-most popular phone in Great Britain.

      My company isn't the most popular in the world in its business, and the division I work in still had almost $1billion worth of revenue last year. This year is down slightly, and they are hoping for around $950million in revenue. You don't have to be number 1 to have a successful business.

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    14. Re:Professor Voice by davester666 · · Score: 1

      Well, it depends on the business and what you have to do to get that $1bn in revenue. If you need to spend $1.5bn to get it...

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
    15. Re: Professor Voice by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      Well, last year we paid out our highest profit sharing payments ever. This year we exceeded last year's total by the 3rd quarter. So I am pretty sure we aren't spending 1.5 to make that 1

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    16. Re: Professor Voice by davester666 · · Score: 1

      Then I don't think you work for BlackBerry...

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
    17. Re:Professor Voice by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Say what you want about BlackBerry, but BBM is actually one of their strongest products.

      And yet nobody knows about it. Tells you more about BlackBerry than anything else.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  3. I tried it for a week by JohnStock · · Score: 1

    I tried it for a week on Android. It's got a horrible UI and offers nothing that's not already out there. The business might collapse at any point and no one I know uses it. So just WHY?

  4. Web version by ThatTreeOverThere · · Score: 1

    >with users of [iOS and Android] able to access the web version So you're telling me there's not going to be native support for it on the bigger platforms? No one's going to use it if it's just a web app on the iPhone or Android. A messaging client can't function without notifications, for instance.

  5. I'm buying - Blackberry has a future by JoeyRox · · Score: 1


    A future in the museum of forgotten electronic gadgets that were once popular but have long since been forgotten.

  6. Yo, BlackBerry! by emil · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Here's an idea for you: my Playbook would love to run BBM. It might also like to load APK files directly. It's called backporting. A few companies make quite a bit of money at it.

    1. Re:Yo, BlackBerry! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      lol you bought a Playbook.

  7. Too late by Hamsterdan · · Score: 1

    Twitter is too big to be taken on by RIM. Microsoft was kinda successful with Bing because it could sink tons of time and money into it, which RIM doesn't have.

    --
    I've got better things to do tonight than die.
  8. Re:Whips and Chains!! by Grisstle · · Score: 1

    No way man, big beautiful manatees was the name manatee porn lovers have been using since the old timey days when we thought they were mermaids.

  9. #2 in South Africa? How nice for them. by gumbright · · Score: 1

    Its not like South Africa has demonstrated a tendency to hold onto things that are past their time or anything...

  10. yawn. so they finally recompiled something. by swschrad · · Score: 1

    this is just about as significant as Sparkum Flint Works releasing a new line of arrowheads in a New York City event. on the wharf. at 2 am. on Thanksgiving Day. not even a slow or dead news cycle is going to get any interest.

    --
    if this is supposed to be a new economy, how come they still want my old fashioned money?
  11. Please stop by MikeBabcock · · Score: 1

    Stop publicizing all these ridiculous closed chat systems. We have Jabber and IRC and SIP -- we don't need to support this craziness anymore.

    --
    - Michael T. Babcock (Yes, I blog)
    1. Re:Please stop by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      But .. but ... but ... but I'm a MANAGER! I have to have access to something exclusive that the plebs don't have!

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  12. It's actually a great tablet OS. by emil · · Score: 1

    BlackBerry should license an updated Playbook OS on cheap terms for Chinese tablets. It has its quirks, but it's far better software than most JellyBean implementations. With BB10's ability to run APKs natively, it would knock Android out of the market. BB10 user satisfaction is especially good for Android converts. I have yet to make the Playbook suddenly reboot, which is far too common with most Android. The Playbook probably has equivalent performance of the IPad 2/3, and is far lower in cost. The interface controls are superb. My phone runs cyanogenmod, but I'd love to have another option with a QNX kernel.