Blackberry Sales Manual

II. Preapproach Information

A. Company and Product Background

1. Blackberry was introduced by Research in Motion Limited (RIM), a leading designer, manufacturer, and marketer of wireless solutions which offers services worldwide (www.rim.com, 2005). RIM provides platforms and solutions for flawless access to time-sensitive information such as email, phone, short message service (SMS), internet, and intranet applications (Ibid, 2005). RIM's award-winning products, services, and technologies include the Blackberry wireless platform, the RIM Wireless Handheld product line, software development tools, radio-modems, and software/hardware licensing agreements (Ibid, 2005).

T-Mobile is a national provider of wireless voice, data services, and messaging which employs more than 26.000 employees has an estimated 20 million subscribers (www.tmobile.com, 2005). They operate on an all-digital, national, wireless network based on the globally dominant GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) technology (Ibid, 2005). T-Mobile also operates a Wi-Fi wireless broadband network which gives high-speed internet access at speeds of about 40-50 times faster than standard dial-up (Ibid, 2005). Among their many products, they sell a wide variety of Blackberry handheld devices including the Blackberry 7100t to both the general public and to businesses.

RIM was founded in 1984 by Mike Lazaridis, who currently serves as its co-CEO along with Jim Balsillie, and it based in Waterloo, Ontario (www.rim.com, 2005). They operate firms in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific (Ibid, 2005). Prior to the manufacture of the Blackberry, RIM worked with Ericsson to turn its Mobitex wireless data network into a two-way paging and wireless email network (www.wikipedia.com, 2005). A crucial aspect in this development was the release of the Inter@ctive pager 950 in August of 1998 (Ibid, 2005). About the size of a bar of soap, this device competed with SkyTel two way paging network developed by Motorola (Ibid, 2005).

The first Blackberry was released in early 1999, integrating a cell phone, as well as the first Blackberry sold outside North America was released in 2001, using the European GSM/GPRS standard (Ibid, 2005).

The U.S. operations of T-Mobile International AG & Co. K.G. is based in Bellevue, Washington and consists of T-Mobile USA, Inc. (formerly VoiceStream Wireless), and Powertel, Inc. (www.tmobile.com, 2005). Through the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) auctions of broadband PCS licenses, Western Wireless Corp. acquired licenses in 1995, 1997, and 1999 through its VoiceStream Wireless subsidiary (Ibid, 2005). Western Wireless was formed in 1994 when General Cellular Corp. and Pacific Northwest Cellular merged (Ibid, 2005). On May 3, 1999, VoiceStream Wireless was spun off Western Wireless and soon blended together with Omnipoint Communications and Aerial Communications but continued to keep the VoiceStream name (Ibid, 2005). In May of 2001, Deutsche Telekom AG, a German company, acquired VoiceStream Wireless Corp. and Powertel Inc. and added a U.S. based location to T-Mobile International (Ibid, 2005).

3. A Blackberry is a wireless device which can be held in the palm of your hand. They come in many different models but most offer the same basic features such as email, phone, short message service (SMS), organizer, browser, and instant messaging (www.blackberry.com, 2005). Blackberry offers an endless number of wireless solutions to both individuals and businesses (Ibid, 2005). In addition to these elements, the Blackberry 7001t is loaded with integrated Bluetooth connectivity, speakerphone, downloadable ringtones, and an extra large high-resolution color screen for easy internet browsing (www.tmobile.com, 2005).

Basic info:

Size: 4.69 x 2.29 x 0.75 inches

Weight: 4.24 ounces

Included battery: Lithium cell

Talk time: Up to 4 hours

Standby time: Up to 8 days

International phone: Quad-band (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) Included accessories:

International travel charger

Two USB cables

Battery

Holster

Hands-Free Headset

SIM Card

Blackberry Desktop Software

T-Mobile Blackberry 7100t Features:

Internet and corporate e-mail

Speakerphone

SureType™ QWERTY Keyboard

AOL®, Yahoo® and ICQ® Instant Messaging

Web browser

Bluetooth® wireless technology

Alarm clock

Full-color screen

MegaTones®, Wallpaper, & Games

Text messaging

Hands-free options

Organizer with PC synchronization

Speed dial

Vibrating alert

12-icon graphic desktop

Address book

Call log

t-zones mobile information

Calculator

Backlit screen & keyboard

Preloaded Wallpapers and game

www.tmobile.com

4. Some of Research in Motion's competitors are Hewlett-Packard, Nokia, and Palm (www.hoovers.com, 2005). More specifically, Blackberry's major competitors include Palm, and Sidekick. When comparing these standard devices, Blackberry offers Bluetooth, MegaTones and wallpaper which Sidekick does not. The Blackberry also has a longer standby time than Sidekick. Sidekick on the other hand, features camera or video, games, and weighs considerably less than the Blackberry. Palm offers built-in MP3 players in some of their models which can make it more appealing than Blackberry to a music lover.

Blackberry distributor, T-Mobile battles for sales with Sprint Nextel,