Android on BlackBerry

Oh my. WTF BlackBerry?!?! This is funny. Nokia didn't go with Windows Phone NOT because it was the more successful platform or that their choosing it alone could make it any more successful. Or at least that is amongst the reasons, and I still feel was ultimately a smart move. They chose Windows Phone because the Android market was oversaturated, and even many of the big players were either struggling to be successful or were outright hemorrhaging money. Nokia didn't gamble on Android because there were too many competitors to differentiate themselves against. It would have been a bad move then, and it would be an even worse move now. There are still too many players and big ones are even bigger. If this is true, this is the hail Mary toss for BB. This is the admission that their OS is beyond being on life support. But, the problem is a simple one. Hardware isn't profitable. And much like BBM was too late to the party to be a commercially viable competitor in the cross platform chat market, BlackBerry hardware is now FAR beyond too late to the party to be a serious competitor in the Android handset market. And, it is worse than simply being too late to the party. A change in OS now will alienate those actually liked the platform. It also can't really happen without BlackBerry contributing software back to help make Android as secure as BBOS was. And the second that happens, even the businesses that have been invested in BlackBerry have no need to stay with the hardware and once that choice opens up their market share will shrink further. A partnership with Apple (unlikely) or Microsoft (seems probable) would have allowed for a platform where there aren't yet enough big players for their hardware to actually be a differentiating factor. Both could have provided a boost to both parties. Short of Google buying BB, I don't see a way for going to Android route to be beneficial to BlackBerry. Also, if you pay close attention to the render, it would seem like some sweetheart deal with Google is unlikely. That phone looks to be pre-loaded with Skype and Bing. Of course, I don't think there are any official reports supporting this, just leaks and rumours. So, it could simply be that BlackBerry is researching the possibility. Just as with Microsoft testing out disc-less Xbox Ones, it is common for tech companies to investigate their options. I haven't been a fan of BlackBerry phones for a long time now. But that doesn't mean that I want to see them commit professional suicide. And to that end, my suggestion would be firstly trying to long shot and reaching out to Apple and seeing what sort of deal if any could be struck. Apple has the most cash and it is also the platform most sorely in need of a true enterprise back end. Apple is the least likely to let someone else in on their OS, but that also means that if some sort of magic could be worked, it would be the most viable place for BlackBerry to succeed. Should that fall through, the next call should be to Microsoft. Microsoft has enterprise solutions, but BlackBerry's offerings have proven more enticing to some. It might be worth it to Microsoft to partner and figure out how to make their enterprise offerings into something which could be extended by BES. Lastly, I would say that BlackBerry should hook up with the folks at Jolla. The Platform doesn't have many hardware partners yet, but it does have a lot of momentum behind it in certain areas. Being onboard when the Platform gets off the ground could cement their place with that OS. And while Jolla's market share may be currently non-existent, no Platform or brand lasts forever and someone will eventually unseat Android. If the next wave of OS is out there today, Jolla seems as likely as bet as any.