The BlackBerry has revolutionized not only the way people do business, but also the way people communicate. Invented by a once-small Canadian company, Research in Motion, it now garners over a million new subscribers every month, in over 150 countries. With a market capitalization of $43 billion dollars, RiM has an annual growth rate of 84%. For busy executives it is a crucial business tool, enabling one to be on email anywhere, any time. For the younger generation, in their twenties or even teens, a Blackberry has become a must-have style accessory to rival the iPod or iPhone. Barack Obama refused to give up his on becoming President of the USA. It has even spawned a nickname, "Crackberry", to mock those users so wedded to their device that they must check it obsessively, and a new form of repetitive strain injury, where chronic over-users develop intense pain in both thumbs. With thousands of hours of interviews with people close to the company, including unprecedented access to company founders Jim Balsillie & Mike Lazaridis (they are writing the foreword), award-winning business writer Rod McQueen has crafted an arresting narrative telling this incredible story.
Rod McQueen is a technology and business journalist based in Canada.