RIM makes second acquisition geared to new OS
QNX Software could also herald move to tablet and in-car markets
Published: 12 April, 2010
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RIM has announced its second acquisition in two weeks, demonstrating its expansion into applications and possibly heralding a tablet launch later this year. Last month it snapped up BlackBerry apps house Viigo, and now it has followed up by buying QNX Software Systems, a unit of Harman International Industries, specializing in in-car software.
The three companies said the move would strengthen QNX's penetration in the automotive market, and stimulate new product development in markets served by all three. All the major device makers are expanding their activities in the auto sector, as the in-car terminal becomes another of the multiple screens served by web content. Looking to create unified experiences across cellphones, PCs, TVs, in-car modules and tablets, web and hardware players are racing for partners. Nokia announced a collaboration with Continental for dashboard systems last week. The QNX software is used in more than 200 vehicle models, claiming to be in over half of factory equipped hands-free systems, says its web site.
However, RIM's purchase is likely to be looking beyond the vehicle market and could be part of a broader strategy to update its operating system more radically, and shift into new device formats such as tablets. The BlackBerry maker articulated one of the most advanced of the 'multiple screen, single experience' strategies when it unveiled its applications store, but is far from filling in all the pieces in reality. In particular, despite some enhancements, the OS is starting to look rather tired beside iPhone 4.0, Android and the upcoming Symbian^3 and MeeGo.
"They're essentially well behind the curve in terms of developing a state-of-the-art operating system for mobile devices," Carmi Levy, an independent technology analyst, told Dow Jones newswires. "They're relying on an operating system that is largely unchanged over much of the past decade, so the QNX acquisition gives them that much more engineering firepower to accelerate development of next generation operating systems." Other acquisitions, such as that of WebKit browser maker Torch Mobile last summer, also seem to be feeding into a full revamp of the BlackBerry software platform.
Canada-based QNX boasts that it has created a hybrid software model with three main components - open access to product sourcecode; a commercial-friendly licensing model that lets customers modify source code and retain ownership of their modifications; and a transparent development process that allows customers and community members to participate in product development. This reflects the trend towards open or semi-open source models - such as Nokia's favored Eclipse - that guard commercial interests more than the purer forms. But could it point to RIM shifting towards the world of open source, which so far - unlike Palm - it has avoided?
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