RIM Offers Testing For Phone Software
Research In Motion Ltd. is joining a new Internet-based software-testing service to help speed the rollout of applications for its BlackBerry phone-and-email devices.
In producing applications for mobile phones, independent software developers historically have faced a big challenge: how to write software that works across phones without buying every device and testing their software on it. Devices also work differently on each carrier's telecom networks, a problem highlighted by delays in the U.S. of RIM's high-speed broadband phone, the Bold, on AT&T Inc.'s network.
RIM, of Waterloo, Ont., will make testing available in partnership with DeviceAnywhere, a service that lets outside developers test their applications on a single system that represents 100 Blackberry models running on 16 networks.
RIM shares have lost more than half their value since mid-August on concerns that the company's push into consumer markets was eroding profit margins. The shares fell $5.10, or 8.6%, to $53.91 Monday in 4 p.m. composite trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Several analysts lowered earnings forecasts as product delays and slowed consumer spending reduced sales.
Under pressure from rivals including Apple Inc. and Google Inc., RIM is working with 100,000 developers to create applications for such uses as gaming and navigation that link customers more tightly to their devices.
"A lot of the applications they are developing are becoming mission-critical, like email is," said Tyler Lessard, director of alliances at RIM. "We provide online simulators to show how the application will behave on different models of BlackBerrys. But this allows them to log into a physical device that is actually running on the network."
DeviceAnywhere is a service of Mobile Complete, a closely-held company based in San Mateo, Calif. It is backed by the venture-capital wings of Motorola Inc. and France Télécom SA. It has partnerships with manufacturers including Nokia Corp. and Sony Ericsson, a joint venture of Sony Corp. and Telefon AB L.M. Ericsson, and all major U.S. carriers including AT&T Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp.
