Is RIM, a Canadian national icon, at its breaking point?

BlackBerry Messenger, the nifty and efficient personal-messaging service that’s become so important to bracing Research In Motion Ltd.’s fatigued appeal in these trying times, may just owe its existence to a local telecom outfit. “There was a point there where RIM said they were thinking about getting out of BBM,” John Boynton, chief marketing officer at Rogers Communications Inc., recalls. “We said, ‘No, no! We think it’s great.’ ”

Nearly all of my calls on equity, sovereign nations and industries are highly contrarian. At first blush, I get a lot of flack, negative feedback and very little attention save that small coterie of paid subscribers whom I cater to. In the spring/summer of 2010 with RIM trading in the $60s or so, I warned that this company had defintiely seen its heyday. I put out very specific research to subscribers, including downloadable models and extensive reports.

Sony is slashing 8,000 jobs, or 4 percent of its global work force, aiming to cut costs by $1.1 billion a year as a global downturn and stronger yen batters profits at the Japanese electronics maker.

Sony is slashing 8,000 jobs, or 5 percent of its global electronics work force, aiming to cut costs by $1.1 billion a year as a global downturn batters profits.

By Takeover Analyst:The struggling BlackBerry-maker, Research in Motion (RIMM) has recently been targeted by Canadian activist investor Jaguar Financial Corp. Jaguar, which owns a little less than 5% of RIM, joins NEI Investments in reforming the company that has lost nearly half of its value.

By Rocco Pendola:CNET published the scoop Thursday morning on a potential Research In Motion (RIMM) plan to move ahead with plans to offer a BlackBerry music service:

Ian Bezek submits:The past week's events have certainly been scary for investors in Research In Motion (RIMM).