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]
News
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.
Top Stories
News
12 hours ago
King and Flexion partner to bring Candy Crush Saga to App Gallery and more alternative app stores
News
12 hours, 55 minutes ago
Zynga’s Game of Thrones: Legends is open for pre-registrations with a July 25th release date
Feature
Jun 11th, 2024
Mobile Mavens: Are today's everlasting, live ops games holding back new innovation?
Feature
Jun 11th, 2024
The key takeaway from Apple's AI-laden WWDC keynote? It's time to buy a new iPhone
Events
Tribeca Games Festival 2024 | North America | Jun 5th |
Steam Next Fest: June 2024 Edition | Jun 10th | |
WN Conference Istanbul 2024 | Jun 11th | |
GamesForum Hamburg 2024 | Europe | Jun 11th |
ESI London 2024 | Europe | Jun 13th |
Game Con Canada (GCC) 2024 | North America | Jun 14th |
Indie Dev Play 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |
DevGAMM Vilnius 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |
Popular Stories
Interview
Jun 5th, 2024
A galaxy far, far away… Why Star Wars: Hunters took six years to hit the target
Interview
Jun 7th, 2024