BlackBerry May Attempt To Resurrect Its Ecosystem With Android

BlackBerry may well do a major about-face and give us Androids.

BlackBerry reportedly acquired the domains AndroidSecured.com, as well as AndroidSecured.net, fueling rumors that the Canadian company may be leaning towards the shift to Android. BlackBerry also unveiled an Android-powered slider phone in the recent GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) that took place in March 2015.

BlackBerry CEO John Chen has hinted at the possibilities of adopting the Android as an OS to power the BlackBerry devices, as long as they can boost the OS’ security. After all, Chen points out, BlackBerry builds “only secure phones,” adding that the BlackBerry is “the most secure phone” around.

One of the ways that BlackBerry seems to hope to keep their enterprise customers on the ecosystem is through their new BES12 mobile device management system, which will enable corporations and government agencies alike to deploy and manage corporate devices en masse.

However, are these features enough to keep a sizable consumer demographic powering BlackBerry’s profit, and hopefully, recovery?

The tech rumor mill continues to buzz as BlackBerry attempts to salvage its decline with the possibility of offering Android-powered devices. The news is met with ambivalence, as there are several factors that industry insiders point out:

• Profits are not guaranteed with Android devices. As we saw in recent news, Samsung’s profits have fallen a whopping 53%. Unless BlackBerry finds a way to make its devices unique and interesting enough for the market to snap up, its only draw may be the classic QWERTY keyboard.

• The existing BlackBerry market wants its classic features: A high level of security and encryption, the classic QWERTY keypad, and possibly even the features they were used to, such as the BlackBerry Messenger (BBM).

• BlackBerry has failed at taking a swipe at the iPhone’s market with its touchscreen devices. The touchscreen models were met with a lukewarm reception.

• Nokia failed at securing a spot in the hearts of Android fans; what could BlackBerry possibly bring to the table that would set it apart from the competition?

• End-users don’t really need all that much security and CIA-level encryption. This selling point may not make such a significant difference.

Given these challenges, and the fact that BlackBerry recently had to pull off a massive global retrenchment move, all odds seem to be blatantly against the BlackBerry.

And yet, BlackBerry’s loyal fans, albeit diminishing in number, continue to hope for the company to pull through. Maybe there’s hope yet.