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RIM dismisses PlayBook discontinuation rumours as 'pure fiction'

Remains committed to tablet

RIM dismisses PlayBook discontinuation rumours as 'pure fiction'
It says much about RIM's current market status that highly speculative whispers it was considering whether to discontinue its PlayBook tablets have forced a "pure fiction" statement from the company.

The rumours the PlayBook would be put out to pasture surfaced when a Collins Stewart analyst announced on Thursday (29 September) that "RIM has stopped production of its PlayBook and is actively considering exiting the tablet market."

According to the report, RIM's contracted manufacturer Quanta Computer had laid off a significant number of its workers from the project and RIM itself was also considering the discontinuation of "additional tablet projects."

QNX commitment

However, RIM's statement, sent to Reuters, firmly dismissed the suggestion.

"Rumors suggesting that the BlackBerry PlayBook is being discontinued are pure fiction," said spokeswoman Marisa Conway.

"RIM remains highly committed to the tablet market and the future of QNX in its platform."

The QNX OS used in the PlayBook is to be used in BlackBerry's 2012 superphones as it intends to upgrade its ageing phone software.

The PlayBook has lagged behind its competitors, as Apple's iPad consistently dominates the global market share for media tablets. It was being sold at a rate of one PlayBook for every 19 iPads earlier in September.

The prospects looked dim as well, when Canadian shareholders urged the company to sell itself, or its patents in a bid to combat its rapidly falling stock price.

[source: Reuters]

When Matt was 7 years old he didn't write to Santa like the other little boys and girls. He wrote to Mario. When the rotund plumber replied, Matt's dedication to a life of gaming was established. Like an otaku David Carradine, he wandered the planet until becoming a writer at Pocket Gamer.