FollowLast weekend, BBM was supposed to come out with their Messenger application compatible for all three platforms i.e. their own BB 10, Apple’s iOS along with the Google Android operating system. The launch of the BBM app at the Google Play Store however turned out to be far from a smooth one as users already were greeted with fake BBM apps which in reality are older versions of the app that might be close to the real thing but still contain quite a few anomalies that the final version is devoid of. The legitimate downloads that took place just after the launch last weekend has been 1.1 million as per BlackBerry. The company however had to halt the continuation of the app and remove them from Apple as well as Android platform sites, due the huge traffic congestion occurring as a result of the bogus links being directed to their servers.
Andrew Bocking from BBM, Waterloo stated that the distribution of the app was not a simple task. They would have to take stock of the situation again before re-starting the launch. In his words, there was no way to stop the bogus versions connecting to their servers from where authentic downloads of the correct BBM version for Android and iOS was taking place. The number of such users had increased to such high numbers that they were forced to stop the roll out of the authentic application download.
He clarified that their team is currently working out a process to block off the bogus application versions and then re-launch their Messenger app. This task he mentioned would take some time for which he requested users to be patient. He also mentioned that updates on this issue would be regularly posted @BBM on Twitter. All registered users would be notified via these channels about the availability of the correct application as and when it so happens.
The above development has come at a time when the company is in dire straits in the face of diminishing interest for its devices. With competition from Android as well as Apple’s iPhone, BlackBerry already had to write off a significant amount in losses with things coming to such that the company bosses are even contemplating buying out BlackBerry for an estimated $4.7 billion. Dell is another company that has gone private in recent times after faced with bleak sales of its PCs.
