BlackBerry fades to grey against diverse market
BlackBerry's latest offerings create more questions than answers for enterprises trying to define a mobility strategy, says Paul Fawcett
After 18 months of licking its wounds and regrouping, BlackBerry is now trying to reconquer the enterprise market that Apple, Google and Microsoft have been steadily eating into.
The one question I am constantly asked is: "Are the BB10 devices game changers for businesses?" My answer is a definitive no.
If IT leaders were hoping that BlackBerry's latest OS would be a magic cure-all, so compelling and innovative that it made their mobile strategy and device choices a no-brainer, they will be disappointed.
The mobile market is a constantly changing environment; unlike the days when security-conscious BlackBerry effortlessly cornered the enterprise market, there is no black and white any more, only shades of grey.
The problem is not with BB10 itself. In fact, the shiny new OS has some slick features. This includes Peek, where you can check your messages and so on with a single flick of the touch screen; and BlackBerry Hub, with its Unified Inbox and Balance, aimed at solving the BYOD challenge from both an IT and employee perspective.
Likewise, the Z10 is a capable device, but it's basically just more of the same and doesn't have much that distinguishes it from other premium smartphones – although I am a fan of the virtual keyboard and novel twist on predictive text.
The big challenge for the channel is trying to become more proactive about mobilising customers' workforces. IT tends to tackle challenges piecemeal while struggling to keep up with the deluge of new devices, OSes and trends such as BYOD.
Keeping on top of market change and the latest devices and platforms can be a full-time job. BlackBerry's latest follow Window 8, which in my view offers business users a consistent experience across smartphone, PC and tablets.
And now Samsung is plotting a push for a bigger share of the enterprise market with Samsung for Enterprise, which will further muddy already murky waters.
Customers will increasingly want support across multiple manufacturer devices, both personal and corporate. They want their people to be able to do their job wherever they are.
What they definitely don't want is a jack-of-all-trades device that ticks the main boxes, satisfying most, but inspiring no one. There may also be a need for some (but not all) businesses to have 4G devices.
A flexible multi-vendor, multi-device strategy with the tools, policies and expertise to secure and support it will help firms mobilise their workforce while unlocking productivity and efficiency gains.
A further benefit would be an ability to adopt new technology and innovations as soon as they become available.
What might BlackBerry's future be in the enterprise space? It released promising sales of the Z10 in Canada and the UK, which is historically BlackBerry-friendly territory, but the US launch might be more instructive.
Most BlackBerry users working in our customers' businesses currently have a cheaper device than the £400 Z10, and BlackBerry's historic successes have been with handsets in the £150 range --– a section of the market criminally neglected in the mobile device wars.
The higher price point ignores the chance to distinguish BlackBerry from Apple and Android premium smartphones. And with the rise of BYOD, the uptake of its devices in the consumer market will also play a role.
Why not hedge your bets, and point customers at a multi-vendor, mixed-device estate? This may also offer technical agility allowing new device, service and app adoption as they reach the market.
Paul Fawcett is product manager for mobility at Azzurri Communications