RIM turning to the Web to solve fragmentation

SAN DIEGO--With device and operating system fragmentation issues continuing to multiply, Research In Motion said it is looking to the Web to create a more standardized and cohesive mobile software development ecosystem. "The most promising bet around standardization is Web technology," said the device maker's senior vice president of BlackBerry Platforms, Alan Brenner, at the Mobile Entertainment Live! event here Tuesday. "We're looking to take advantage of the Web to simplify the developer market."

Case in point: Hours prior to the event, RIM announced the beta release of its BlackBerry Widget Software Development Kit, promising third-party application developers the tools to create rich, integrated applications for BlackBerry smartphones using common web technologies. According to RIM, each BlackBerry Widget uses the BlackBerry Browser engine to render an application's user interface via HTML, CSS and JavaScript--developers can translate their existing Web content to the BlackBerry platform, and extend the capabilities of their Web apps using BlackBerry Widget APIs. Programmers can use the new BlackBerry Widget APIs to create interaction between a widget and the BlackBerry email and calendar applications, build widgets equipped to view or edit files and documents stored on the smartphone, and access location-based services or the media player, and more--in addition, developers can exploit BlackBerry push technology to enable dynamic widgets that can run in the background and transmit proactive user alerts.

Brenner also addressed the company's BlackBerry App World virtual storefront. He declined to offer specific download metrics, but said "interest and participation in App World are growing steadily. Developers are pleased with the results." Brenner noted that RIM recently tweaked BlackBerry App World to make it easier for consumers to find and purchase software, adding the store has "plenty of headroom to grow the number of applications" before it poses a discovery challenge comparable to rival app stores. "We need to make it easy for people to navigate the store independent of the number of apps," he added. "We've worked hard to make the experience easy for subscribers."