Samsung: Android's Major Threat?

Android is the world's most popular mobile operating system; 75% of all smartphones sold in Q1 2013 were Android. From humble beginning in 2008, Android worked its way to the top, supported by phone manufacturers who wanted a stake in the then Nokia/Apple dominated market. Android is an open-source software stack with permissive licensing which allows the software to be freely modified and distributed by device manufacturers, carriers and developers. 

Samsung has benefited the most from the success of Android, as its sales figures and profits have increased enormously over the years. The successful launch of the Galaxy S4 is an indicator that it's a major player in the handset market and the undisputed "King of Android". But it's not certain how long this fruitful union will last. There are indications that both parties are getting wary of the other.

Samsung always aimed to stand out from other Android device manufacturers by trying to create a Samsung experience, with the introduction of Samsung apps blended with Android releases for specific features on their devices. Now, they've taken it a step further by introducing apps such as the S-Voice and S-Translator in its flagship Galaxy series which can be viewed as alternatives to the Google apps. 

Not only that, Samsung announced a campaign in February that promises developers, 100% of revenue from software sold in its store. This is a massive effort to encourage the development of apps specifically for Samsung phones. It's evident Samsung have a plan of a future without Android and are simply getting all they need from Android; waiting for the perfect time to move on.

Google on the other hand are wary of this threat to Android and had hoped to use Motorola (which it acquired in 2011), as its joker, but this has not paid off yet. It has been slow to get the production lines busy again, though there are rumours of a Google inspired X phone from Motorola, meant to rival the iPhone and Galaxy S series phones.


Android and Samsung have come a long way together, thumping Apple to second best and causing a stir in the mobile world. However, things are not the way it used to be and their relationship can be summed up by the line " Keep you friends close but your enemies closer".

Analysis: Why BBM is going on Android and IOS

It might come to many as a surprise why RIM to roll out BBM on Android and iOS a few days ago. It was actually a smart business decision.

RIM has previously restricted the BBM app to only Blackberry devices as a means of making the Blackberry phones more attractive to the prospective consumers, but this is not working as RIM has lost a lot of the market share to Android, iOS and even Windows. BBM is the most valuable product that RIM have as we speak, and it'll be bad for such a good app to go extinct due the struggling Blackberry sales figures.

Competition from other messaging apps (such as Whatsapp) might also be a major reason behind this move. From humble beginning in 2009, Whatsapp was handling ten billion messages per day as of August 2012, growing from two billion in April 2012 and one billion in October 2011. This tremendous growth experienced by Whatsapp was due to the fact that it was cross-platform i.e it works on all major platforms (Android, BB OS, iOS, Symbian S40, S60, Windows). Whatsapp is also seen as a cheaper alternative to text as was observed on the last day of 2012 when they processed 18 billion messages.
Party crashers, Google and Facebook are also working on messaging app due for release anytime soon, so this is the best time for RIM to make the move.

Another reason is the launch of BBM Channel. It's a new platform from RIM to will allow users subscribe to various channels and get updates from the subscribed channel...sounds like another name for twitter if you ask me. However,  cross platform operation is key in order to achieve success and revenue from this new service.

It seems RIM have got it all figured out, what better way to take on your competitor than on a level playing field. I expect the number of active BBM users and messages to increase, which might mark a turnarounf in the fortunes of RIM, however, I am skeptical about the success of the BBM channel. Interesting days ahead

***Sent from my BBM for Android***


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BBM Quick Facts:

• More than 60 million monthly active users
• More than 51 million daily active users who are connecting with friends or colleagues an average of one and a half hours every day.
• BBM users send and receive more than 10 billion messages each day, nearly twice as many messages per user per day as compared to other mobile messaging apps
• Almost half of BBM messages are read within 20 seconds of being received; indicating how truly engaged BBM customers are

BlackBerry To Launch BBM On Android And iOS This Summer

Today at BlackBerry Live, CEO Thorsten Heins announced BBM will soon be available on Android and iOS. The messaging app will launch globally this summer. This is a huge move for BlackBerry as it brings BB10′s strongest feature to literally hundreds of millions of potential users.
“It is a state of confidence,” Heins explained. “The BB10 platform is so strong and the response has been so good that the time is right for BBM to become an independent mobile messaging platform.”
The app will be free on both Android and iOS. Much like other messaging apps, it will be a standalone application. iOS 6 or Ice Cream Sandwich will be required.
Initially, only messaging and group features will be available. But Heins promised that the rest of BBM will eventually make its way to the Android and iOS versions including screen sharing, BBM voice and the just-announced BBM channels.
We are making the BBM platform more powerful than ever”, Heins proudly stated. And with this very uncharacteristic move from BlackBerry, it’s hard to argue against his statement.
It’s clear BlackBerry is finally waking up. They are no longer the big dog in the mobile war. If they are to survive, the company needs to forge new relationships and learn to work well with the two reigning platforms. This move to put BBM on Android and iOS is a big step forward. BlackBerry might actually have a chance. (Culled from Techcrunch)