Facebook's group messaging app was launched just a little more than two months ago. Messaging using Facebook Messenger goes around mobile phone companies' text messaging service and is free. Messages can, however, be sent to people without a Facebook account using conventional mobile phone text message services. This week it received a significant upgrade to version 1.5. Facebook Messenger for iPhone and Android 1.5 gains presence features that lets you know who is on Facebook and who is mobile. [...]

Read More: Facebook Messenger Updated for Android & iPhone. BlackBerry Gets an App Too

RIM released another beta update to its BlackBerry Twitter app. The version 2.1 beta brings the BlackBerry Twitter experience closer to what is available on other mobile platforms.Twitter for BlackBerry Smartphones v2.1 (Beta): Multi-Account Support (Official BlackBerry Blog)The biggest enhancement is the ability to use more than one Twitter account. One common use-case for multiple accounts is a person who maintains personal and business Twitter accounts. There is a Switch Account function to w [...]

Read More: Twitter for BlackBerry 2.1 Beta Adds Multiple Accounts Support

It's time for BlackBerry DevCon, the developer conference for RIM's BlackBerry platform. CEO Mike Lazaridis has taken the stage to open the conference and he's talking about some pretty impressive...

Read More: RIM CEO Mike Lazaridis talks BlackBerry numbers and BBX at DevCon

As part of its efforts to appease BlackBerry owners following a four-day service outage, RIM has announced it will offer customers a selection of premium applications worth more than $100...

Read More: RIM offers free apps, support as compensation for BlackBerry outage

The unfortunate three-day BlackBerry message service outage in Africa, Europe and the Middle East last week had the interesting unintended side effect of demonstrating the contribution of texting/emailing-while-driving to automobile accidents and deaths. The National reported that Dubai officials reported data which indicates that:


Read More: Did the Three Day BlackBerry Outage Last Week Save Lives?

Last week we were in the midst of a lesson in Crisis Public Relations at its worst from Blackberry. For a number of days there were outages worldwide and users unable to connect.  And Blackberry spokespersons were communicating with messages like "Message delays were caused by a core switch failure in RIM's infrastructure." That’s not [...]

Read More: 5 Simple Social Crisis Steps For Blackberry

Research In Motion's Blackberry line might be losing market share in North America but it is growing rapidly in Africa. In South Africa for instance, it commands a whooping 70%...

Read More: BlackBerry takes flight in Africa as sales slump in North America

As RIM's BlackBerry servers and associated services begin to return to normal, company founder and co-CEO Mike Lazaridis has taken to the Canadian-based company's YouTube channel to personally apologise for...

Read More: RIM founder on BlackBerry issues: “We’ve let many of you down” [Video]

If you've been having BlackBerry problems for the past few days, you're far from alone. Canada-based Research In Motion has been having some serious server issues and, in a conference...

Read More: RIM explains BlackBerry outage, but gives no ETA of a fix

As RIM's BlackBerry servers and associated services begin to return to normal, company founder and co-CEO Mike Lazaridis has taken to the Canadian-based company's YouTube channel to personally apologise for worldwide outages affecting customers, detailing exactly what happened for such a prominent service to be unavailable for so long. Echoing a written statement on BlackBerry's [...]

Read More: RIM founder on BlackBerry issues: “We’ve let many of you down” [Video]

There may yet be hope for those of you who are still addicted to your BlackBerry devices. You might remember a about a year ago when instant-messaging service Kik got...

Read More: Kik comes back to the BlackBerry, just in time for BBM outage

At a keynote presentation at the GITEX conference in Dubai, Research In Motion's Co-CEO Jim Balsillie launched a new social sharing service called BlackBerry Tag, an NFC-based platform that will help BlackBerry users connect and share content and information with each other. Incorporating it into the next BlackBerry 7 operating system update, BlackBerry Tag will [...]

Read More: RIM unveils BlackBerry Tag, a NFC social sharing service for BlackBerry users

At a keynote presentation at the GITEX conference in Dubai, Research In Motion's Co-CEO Jim Balsillie launched a new social sharing service called BlackBerry Tag, an NFC-based platform that will...

Read More: RIM unveils BlackBerry Tag, a NFC social sharing service for BlackBerry users

AT&T appears to believe that teenagers' phone of choice is a BlackBerry (8xxx and 9xxx models). At least that is one possible theory based on the release of an app for BlackBerry phones that automatically sends customizable replies that the recipient is driving and unable to respond.


Read More: AT&T DriveMode for BlackBerry App Reduces Phone-caused Distractions While Driving

I almost stopped reading RIM's announcement of their BBM Music service after reading this line: Build a personal music profile with 50 of your favorite songs. Fifty songs? As in half of 100? Really? Well, actually, RIM has a social aspect to BBM Music that is quite clever. However, it may still not work out for them. Read on.


Read More: BBM Music for BlackBerry Social Subscription Service: Good Idea That May Fail

A UK teenager has been charged with inciting riots after she used BlackBerry's Messenger (BBM) service to encourage friends to copy the scenes of violence that had sprung up elsewhere across the country.We reported earlier this week that RIM, the makers of BlackBerry smartphones, was engaging with police over the role its BBM service was playing in the London riots.And as the Telegraph reports today, an 18-year old woman from Clacton, in Essex, stands accused of intentionally encouraging or assi [...]

Read More: Teenage girl charged over inciting riots using BlackBerry Messenger

BlackBerry PlayBook tablet owners now have access to content from more than 1,900 publications from 95 countries with the release of PressReader by NewspaperDirect.

Read More: PressReader Newspaper/Magazine App Debuts for BlackBerry PlayBook

What is RIM’s greatest obstacle? Honestly, it’s a tough question to answer seeing that the Waterloo-based company hasn’t had the best few months — but if I had to pick just one issue, it’d be lack of apps.

Not having enough apps on a given platform is akin to sitting down to a perfectly set dinner table and getting no food. Luckily, that Android App player that RIM promised for the BlackBerry PlayBook seems to be nearing launch.

Read More: Android App Player For BlackBerry PlayBook Leaked Out In Beta Form

There was a lot of good economic news in the mobile technology world this week. The entire industry is forecast to generate about $1.3 trillion in revenue this year.If the Mobile Tech Industry Was a Country, Its GDP Would be #13 in the WorldApple reported that they have paid out $2.5 billion to iPhone and iPad app developers.Apple: 15+ Billion Apps Downloaded, $2.5 Billion Paid to DevelopersThe good news continues for mobile app developers in this All Things D article.Smartphone Job Market Ripe [...]

Read More: Good News for Mobile App Developers – Except Those Building for BlackBerry or Windows Phone