14 DAY TRIAL // Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion is reported to plan launching carrier billing for its BlackBerry App World as soon as 2010 is here. The software solutions portal was released only several months ago, yet the handset vendor seems determined to add as many features to it as possible, so as to improve the user experience of any BlackBerry owner out there.
The announcement regarding the carrier billing feature comes from Jim Balsillies, RIM's co-CEO, and was made during a keynote at RIM's BlackBerry's Developer Conference, wirelessweek notes. As many of you might already know, the handset vendor already announced a great deal of new features for its BlackBerry App World, some of which are delivered for developers of BlackBerry applications, while others come for users.
Customers will certainly appreciate a lot having carrier billing available with the BlackBerry App World, as this would mean they can purchase software solutions for their handsets in a simpler manner. At the moment, BlackBerry owners need to use their PayPal credentials in order to make purchases from the storefront, which is not highly appreciated.
The software portal is said to include around 2,500 applications at the moment, a very small amount when compared to the number of apps offered by Apple through its App Store, or by Google via the Android Market. However, the newly announced features for developers should help them build apps for the OS much faster, as they now benefit from a new BlackBerry Theme Studio, as well as to earn more from their solutions through integrated ads.
RIM has been recently said to have been through some rough quarters, as its valuation dropped 35 percent since September, mainly due to the umber of Android-based handsets launched recently, and the latest measures it has announced are certainly expected to help it regain its position. Since it is aiming both at developers and users with the new features for the BlackBerry App World, one should expect it to turn its plans into reality.