Way back in May, BlackBerry announced it would be launching its popular BBM service on Android and iOS during the Summer. Since then the Canadian handset maker has run against the clock, as its predicted timeframe of a BBM release nears its end. However, video has surfaced of the messaging service operating in beta for Android.
The beta version looks like what is running on BlackBerry 10, as all features within the user interface share a familiarity. Even the sounds and notifications are identical of that on BB10.
Ultimately, BBM coming to Android and iOS this late in the game is why BlackBerry is on its way to being out of business as an independently operated company. Years ago, BlackBerry Messenger was the WhatsApp of the time way before the wildly popular messaging service had been created, but BlackBerry (formerly known as RIM) refused to offer the service to other mobile operating systems.
Then, over the years, as BlackBerry watched its market share dominance evaporate, others began to take the mantle in the direction of mobile tech innovation (Google, Apple, Microsoft, and emerging applications).
In the end, BlackBerry will inevitably go down not because of its brand or quality, but because of its own stubbornness. If the company would have seen how companies were beginning to innovate with advent of touchscreen displays and smarter user interfaces, the BlackBerry wouldn’t be in the mess its in today.
UPDATE: I didn’t include the video because BlackBerryOS.com had to remove it due to BlackBerry’s request.
[BlackBerryOS; via Android Police]