The struggling Canadian handset manufacturer is now looking to new device management application options.
As a growing number of smartphone users turn their sights toward third party mobile apps in order to manage their gadgets, BlackBerry has now announced that it will be opening up its current operating system – BlackBerry 10 – to its rivals as a part of an overall strategy that would give products from other companies the ability to manage their gadgets.
The company claims that there have been a number of parties that have expressed interest in this area.
According to BlackBerry, it has seen interest from Citrix, SAP, AirWatch, and even IBM, in being capable of providing mobile apps that would manage the smartphones from that company. BlackBerry released a statement that quoted the Gartner research firm in saying that “Mobile device management (MDM) remains a top priority for IT buyers, and investment levels are growing steadily. Competition among players drives commoditization.”
This BlackBerry acknowledgement regarding third party mobile apps underscores an important trend.
BlackBerry’s statement went on to further quote Gartner by saying that “Proliferation of and demand for workplace mobility necessitate the need for quality and flexible management tools.” Because of this, said BlackBerry, the company is now seeking to be able to work with the aforementioned companies that have expressed interest in giving their customers the “most flexible solution” in order to be able to “support a broader enterprise mobility strategy.”
This places an even greater spotlight on the rising trend among consumers to look to third party opportunities to provide them with their mobile device management options. This is especially true as companies open up their bring your own device (BYOD) policies to a growing number of different types of gadgets.
By introducing this new mobile apps policy, it is BlackBerry’s method of making certain that its own handsets will continue their relevance and will hold onto the foothold they have made within the enterprise space. There, many of the large scale networks are already managed by MDM applications provided by third party vendors. At the same time, the company has clearly stated that it will be continuing to offer its own multi-platform enterprise mobility management platform, the BlackBerry Enterprise Service (BES10).
Wearable devices could be having a problem with their image
Wearable technology has been growing in popularity, but not always because of good reasons. Wearable devices are gaining attention throughout the world because they are being marketed as somewhat revolutionary. Some of these devices can, quite literally, change the way you see the world, while others simply offer you a better way to keep track of your health and other basic information. Some devices are being lauded as tools that could change the way society, as a whole, interacts with itself. The issue, however, is that none of these devices have yet become successful.
What is going on behind the scenes in the technology world may determine the future of wearable devices and their image with the public. Recently, Nike laid off many of the members of its FuelBand team. The FuelBand is a sort of smart wristband that is meant to track physical activity. Nike claims that it will continue providing support for the device, but rumors concerning the FuelBand’s imminent demise have already begun to circulate. While Nike may, indeed, have plans to continue supporting the device, the image that the FuelBand has created for itself may end up affecting its future.
Consumers may be somewhat disinterested in wearable devices
Similar things are happening to other wearable devices as well. The majority of these devices may end up be affected by rumors much more than the FuelBand, however, as most of these devices have not yet been released. Products like augmented reality glasses are often presented as devices that can change how people see the world, but these devices have also been shrouded in controversy. Google’s forthcoming Glass platform, for instance, has run afoul of many lawmakers in some parts of the United States. These legislators suggest that the device will be distracting for drivers and could lead to serious privacy issues. Beyond that, Google had earned some notoriety in the past for constantly changing the features of the Glass platform, initially noting that it would including augmented reality technology, then claiming that it would not support the technology.
One of the most significant challenges facing wearable technology has to do with the apparent lack of interest that consumers have for these devices. While wearable devices have become very popular among tech-savvy individuals, most people have not yet been convinced that these devices are interesting in any way. Marketing that has focused on the vague, innovative aspects of these devices has yet to thrill the majority of people that already have smartphones or tablets.
