bbm

RIM wins court ruling over BBM trademark

While other parts of its business appear to be on the ropes, Research In Motion learned today that it is free to use the BBM acronym to describe its popular BlackBerry Messenger software.

A Canada Federal Court found that the BlackBerry maker's use of BBM did not infringe on the trademark of broadcast measurement firm BBM Canada, which has owned the trademark for more than 50 years, because the two companies operated in different industries.

"We are pleased that the Federal Court of Canada sided with RIM and confirmed that RIM's use of BBM does not infringe … Read more

Did RIM shelve an idea to license BBM to competitors, carriers?

Research In Motion had at least considered licensing BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) before its chief executive Thorsten Heins shifted focus, according to a new report.

Late last year and early into 2012, RIM's executives were drawing up plans to make BBM available for licensing to device makers and carriers, the Wall Street Journal is reporting today, citing sources. According to the publication, the platform was to be called "SMS 2.0," and would work on both Android and iOS.

To help make that push, RIM last year acquired messaging firm LiveProfile, according to the Journal's sources. The … Read more

RIM finally links Facebook, Twitter to BBM

Perhaps acknowledging that ironclad security isn't always fun, Research In Motion announced plans to allow users of its BlackBerry Messenger service to view updates from the popular social-media platforms Facebook and Twitter.

It may come as a shock, but loyal BlackBerry Messenger addicts exist in a corporate walled garden lacking a link to the engaging (or distracting) social-media action their friends and followers are up to. That's all about to change with RIM unveiling plans to add Facebook and Twitter sharing via their respective apps (version 3.0) in the BlackBerry App World store. … Read more

BBM, BlackBerry Travel, and BlackBerry Traffic power up

LAS VEGAS--BlackBerry OS 7.1 wasn't the only thing RIM announced today. Three of the most popular apps on the BlackBerry platform also got some major work done.

First, BBM 6.1 is here, and it adds some sexy NFC flavor to its feature set. Now, friends can invite each other to connect on BlackBerry Messenger by simply tapping their NFC-enabled phones together, which, let's face it, is a hell of a lot easier than inputting those crazy BBM PINs. Also, BBM 6.1 gets the powerful message and profile customization options--animated avatars, emoticons, and colored chat … Read more

There's still a lot to like about RIM. Seriously

commentary OK, so I've been as hard as anyone on Research In Motion. But it's not all bad.

Sure, the company is burdened with a bloated management structure, leaders who in recent months just can't do anything right, and a trajectory that only seems to be headed further south. It's in the doghouse with investors after losing more than three quarters of its market value last year. More importantly, RIM's share in its home market of North America is slowly being ceded to Apple and Android.

But with all of the RIM bashing in recent … Read more

RIM's BBM service targeted for name infringement

Research In Motion could once again face a legal fracas over the name of one of its software products.

Broadcast measurement firm BBM Canada has taken offense with RIM's use of the "BBM" shorthand moniker for its BlackBerry Messenger service, Reuters reports. That's RIM's software that lets BlackBerry users communicate with one another, and comes pre-installed on many of the company's devices.

BBM Canada, which formerly went by the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement until a name shortening in the 1960s, sent a cease and desist letter to RIM for using the BBM naming on … Read more

Still love BlackBerrys? Two more are on the way

Research In Motion today unveiled two more BlackBerrys to its current lineup, continuing an impressive run of new product rollouts.

The company showed off the BlackBerry Bold 9790, which looks like a compact version of its flagship Bold 9900 phone, as well as the all-touch-screen Curve 9380, which looks like a slightly smaller version of the all-touch-screen Torch, and shares similarities with the original--and glitch-plagued--Storm.

The two phones augment an already plentiful lineup of BlackBerrys for RIM, which is hoping its revamped BlackBerry 7 operating system will at least draw in its more loyal customers. While the company is rolling … Read more

Amazon Prime adds book borrowing

eBay speaks out against the latest Internet sales tax proposal, BlackBerry Messenger adds a music service, and Amazon sweetens the Kindle with free book-borrowing for Prime subscribers.

Links from Thursday's episode of Loaded:

Amazon Prime adds book borrowing eBay fighting Internet sales tax proposal Apple: Battery fix is coming Flow is a smooth scanning app BlackBerry Messenger Music Subscribe:  iTunes (MP3) |  iTunes (320x180) |  iTunes (HD) |  RSS (MP3) |  RSS (320x180) |  RSS HD

BlackBerry Messenger vs. Apple's iMessage

One of iOS 5's most anticipated features is iMessage, an Apple instant-messaging service that can be used only among iOS devices. This is essentially Apple's answer to BlackBerry Messenger, RIM's own internal messaging system. The idea behind both messaging services is that they don't cost anything extra and won't deduct from your text messaging plan.

The catch, of course, is that both exist only in either the iOS or the BlackBerry ecosystem. Here, we take the opportunity to compare both messaging services. … Read more