Blackberry reveals date BBM messaging will go to rivals

 From this weekend,
users will no longer
need to own a
Blackberry device
to access its BBM
messaging service.
Blackberry has
confirmed BBM will
be available as a free
download for Apple
and Android devices
but not for Windows
phones.
The move comes as the Wall Street Journal reports
that Blackberry will lay off 40% of its staff before
2014.
Widening the appeal of BBM could be a clever way for
the company to reinvent itself, said experts.
"Blackberry is having a tough time, sales are down, it is
losing market to Windows phones and it needs to do
something to stop the rot. This is as good a move as
any," said Chris Green, principal technology analyst at
Davies Murphy Group Europe.
"Offering it across other platforms broadens the
appeal of BBM," he added.
BBM will be available for Android devices running Ice
Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean while iPhones running
iOS 6 or iOS 7 can also download it. It will be available
for Android from Saturday and for iOS from Sunday.
"With more than a billion Android, iOS and Blackberry
smartphones in the market, and no dominant mobile
messaging platform this is absolutely the right time to
bring BBM to Android and iPhone customers," said
Andrew Bocking, vice-president for BBM in a blogpost.
Reinventing itself
BBM has been described as Blackberry's "crown
jewels" and the service hit a chord with a mass
consumer audience.
Offering it to a wider public will not make any money
for the company.
"It could even cost it money," said Mr Green.
"The firm is having to reinvent itself and whether that
will be by focusing on software, monetising BBM,
licensing its products or joint ventures is not yet clear.
At the moment it is throwing everything out there,"
said Mr Green.
Blackberry chief executive Thorsten Heins revealed
the plan at the company's annual developers
conference in May.
At the time, Mr Heins said that the move was a
"statement of confidence" and would allow Blackberry
Messenger to "become an independent multi-platform
messaging solution".
It could prove disruptive to other messaging services
such as Skype and Whatsapp.