RIM has once again been appealing to developers in an effort to get apps on its platform.

This time, the embattled Canadian company has partnered with cross-platform framework developer Marmalade.

Together, they're offering developers free Marmalade SDK licenses for BlackBerry platforms that allows them to port games to both iOS and Android - as soon as the app in question has launched on BlackBerry, of course.

It's an interesting tactic, no doubt designed to eradicate any fears developers may have about dedicating resources to RIM's platform and missing out on the action on Apple and Google's marketplaces.

To find out more about the thinking behind this partnership - which will also see RIM give away a host of PlayBooks - we caught up with Marmalade CTO Tim Closs.

Pocket Gamer: What are the eligibility criteria for this offer?

Tim Closs: The offer is open to all developers with the capability to publish an app to App World via Marmalade.

Marmalade Professional licence holders are not eligible for this specific offer but should contact us for details of an alternative program. Otherwise, developers simply sign up to the offer online and also register for a BlackBerry Vendor ID if they don't already have one.

We then issue the licence and arrange the shipment of a BlackBerry PlayBook. All details can be found on the Marmalade website.

RIM's in trouble and BlackBerry is losing market share. Aside from the promise of a free upgrade to the full Marmalade SDK, why should developers dedicate resources to developing games for BlackBerry?

The BlackBerry platform has a worldwide audience who download over 170 million apps per month on average across all devices; and developers will also be able to target BlackBerry 10 devices with their game or app via this offer.

It is clear that the BlackBerry platform offers a significant revenue opportunity for developers, and because the developer is creating with Marmalade their content is easily portable to other platforms.

Although we've only just announced the offer we have already seen significant interest and uptake in the promotion.

Once a participating developer publishes a BlackBerry app, they are granted a free Indie license for Marmalade. At this point, how easy is it for this developer to port its BB title to other platforms?

To see the app running across iOS and Android devices is simply a matter a checking a box in the Marmalade deployment tool.

Typically, the developer then needs to spend a little time optimising the app for those devices; for example ensuring the different screen resolutions, texture compression types, and monetisation services are correctly handled.

But this can genuinely be as little as a day each for iOS and Android, especially if the developer has built their app with these considerations in mind.

It seems as though the real incentive in this offer is the full Indie Marmalade license, and launching a BlackBerry app is the hoop developers must jump through to get it. Is RIM just desperate for content, whether it's exclusive or not?

The incentive for the developer is fourfold. The opportunity to reach a huge global audience; the ability to target new BlackBerry 10 devices; a free BlackBerry PlayBook to test on and a Marmalade Indie Licence.

RIM is keen to attract a wide range of content to their platform, to meet the demands of their customers for rich and engaging apps and games.

RIM is being very smart in embracing cross-platform solutions such as Marmalade – it's a cross-platform world now, and (contrary to a couple of years ago) none of the platform owners are expecting absolute exclusivity on content.

What do you make of BB 10, and do you think RIM's new operating system will be able to attract consumers and developers once again?

RIM has put together a very impressive team to create BB 10, including QNX, TAT, Scoreloop and many others.

The PlayBook showed that they are dedicated to a very high quality bar, and with the additional time and resources RIM has invested in BB 10, we believe the devices and the OS will easily stand up next to the latest offerings from Apple, Google and Microsoft.

Given that cross-platform solutions such as Marmalade allow the BlackBerry audience to be targeted for so little extra effort, we think developers will see it as an effort worth making.