Yesterday, in the middle of what is shaping out to be another lackluster Blackberry World, RIM announced in a press release that they would be opening up support for Blackberry Enterprise Server to the competing platforms of Apple's iOS and Google's Android. Dubbed Blackberry Enterprise Solution, the product will be a web-based console that will allow iOS and Android devices to utilize RIM's industry-leading information and security management. Practically speaking, this will allow IT departments that have been slow to move away from RIM's services to incorporate those services into iPhones, Android phones and tablets. This means email, first and foremost, but also includes managing, activating and distributing software to devices over the air. In recent years when these services were exclusive to RIM's own hardware, this has been one of the major reasons why Blackberry devices themselves have sold so dramatically.
Times change, however, and its no secret that the Blackberry is losing ground fast to iOS and Android. The Blackberry Playbook has done nothing to break this fall, and RIM itself has acknowledged that they face major challenges going forward with the aging Blackberry OS. There's been no indication when RIM's new QNX operating system will make it to phones, and it may be too late by the time that happens. RIM may or may not be moving away from the hardware business as a central focus, but in the meantime the explosion of demand for other devices is definitely putting pressure on them to solidify their place in the enterprise. Yesterday's announcement is the first step towards doing exactly that.
As with any announcement that integrates companies and services, there are winners and losers. The following is for your tally sheet at home:
Winners
RIM Enterprise services: Of course, RIM would never have taken this route if they didn't think it was necessary to help their enterprise division. It may not be enough to stop the bleeding entirely, as more desirable handsets enter the market with different server options, but it does help maintain their position as much as possible in the short term.
Apple/ iOS: While the iPhone and iPad have taken great strides in the last few years working their way into enterprise, there are markets that Apple never would have come close to touching without this kind of credible security support.
Google/ Android: Google stands to gain from this move even more than Apple in the sense that Android lacks many of the same security protocols that the iPhone supports and is currently not even considered in the enterprise. This could be a bit of a turning point for Google, though it has to make you wonder how this plays against their stance that Chrome OS is the best "thin client" solution.
Smartphone OEMs: Chained to Google and Android, manufacturers such as HTC, Motorola and Samsung lacked any way of breaking into enterprise without the leadership of Google. In reality, it's RIM that will be bringing them into the fold through their own Android support.
Losers
RIM Hardware division: As much upside as there may be for RIM's enterprise divisions, there has to be just as much downside for RIM's hardware. RIM can no longer go to companies and tout their own devices as the only way to access their services. This is just the first in a long line of transitions away from hardware as the focal point of RIM's business.
HP/WebOS: As if HP didn't have a hard enough time trying to build a compelling case for its upcoming WebOS products, RIM just took away one of their primary strategies. It's no secret that RIM's aging Blackberry platform left a void in the business world that a few companies, HP included, would try to capture. With RIM allowing iOS and Android integration, HP has just gone from competing against the Blackberry to competing with iOS and Android.
Microsoft/ Windows Phone: Microsoft's revamped Windows Phone already lags behind iOS in enterprise options and support. This isn't going to help.
Microsoft/ Enterprise Support: One of the only companies currently competing with RIM in this space from a services perspective, Microsoft now has less of an opportunity to gain back clients from RIM
***Addendum: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took the stage this morning to announce a new partnership with RIM that will bring Bing services to the core of the Blackberry OS. While you can feel for Microsoft trying everything it can to make up ground against Google, this seems like more wasted money in the context of this article. As RIM moves away from their hardware and platform and focuses on their services, Microsoft is investing the the dying side of RIM's business. It's almost hard to watch.