BlackBerry Planet: The Story of Research in Motion and the Little Device that Took the World by Storm »

Alastair Sweeny is a veteran writer specializing in business histories and leading-edge technologies. He has produced and written five corporate histories of leading companies in the energy, financial services, technology and retail sectors. Alastair has also produced book and digital content for Apple Inc. and Microsoft Inc.

We've all heard the hype, but is RIM's BlackBerry really that ubiquitous?

From Chapter 1:

Today the BlackBerry monopolizes the world of work - nobody else comes close. An astounding 85 percent of public corporations are supplying staff with the devices, and more than 175,000 BlackBerry Enterprise Servers are installed worldwide. The US Congress was RIM's first big client, and Uncle Sam is still the biggest consumer of BlackBerrys. Today, more than 500,000 devices are installed in every department of the U.S. government and throughout the US Senate and House of Representatives.

Some larger corporations are handling tens of thousands of e-mail accounts securely and efficiently, and the top three or four companies manage close to 100,000 BlackBerry users each. Security is key. BlackBerry messages are secured with NATO-grade encryption, and network managers love the ability to freeze or wipe data from a lost or stolen BlackBerry.

But Research In Motion (RIM) has also adapted the BlackBerry to serve the consumer as well, and today more than 60 percent of users are outside the enterprise, buying their services from telecom providers.

Alastair Sweeny delves into one of the most successful technology companies in the world. It's a story of determination, innovation and ultimately success - all shaped by the ingenious little device that changed the world.

preface ix

Acknowledgments xvii

A Web Support Service for Readers xix

Chapter 1 The Planet Goes BlackBerry 1

Chapter 2 The Birth of the BlackBerry 32

Chapter 3 Lawsuits in Motion 79

Chapter 4 From Brand to Icon: Seven Years in Motion 127

Chapter 5 BlackBerry Jam 187

Chapter 6 The Rise of the TeleBrain 239

Afterward: Rim on the Plateau? 261

Index 267