Over the last few months, we’ve been able to share more and more about our new mobile computing platform – BlackBerry 10. Starting with the kick-off at BlackBerry 10 Jam in Orlando this past May and leading up to this week’s BlackBerry Jam Asia in Bangkok, developers from around the globe have been hard at work creating amazing apps and games for BlackBerry 10.

Apps and games are extremely important (and let’s be honest, a fun way to occupy yourself while you’re waiting in line at the airport) – but sometimes you want to just put on your headphones and listen to your favorite album or catch up on an episode of a must-watch TV show.

While developers have been building apps, other teams at RIM have been meeting with content partners, music labels, networks, and studios to make sure we have an amazing catalog of music and video in one storefront with one login on your BlackBerry 10 smartphone. We’ll have more on that as we get closer to launch, including details on country availability for this additional content – but there is some news I can share with you today.

In the beta OS build that BlackBerry developers are receiving today, there’s an updated icon for your local neighborhood app storefront. Starting today – we’d like to say good bye to BlackBerry App World and introduce you to the BlackBerry World storefront.

What does this mean for developers?

• We’ll be releasing updated marketing graphics for developers to use on their websites and other marketing materials
• We’ll be rolling out the name change to all store fronts starting mid-January 2013
  • BlackBerry PlayBook tablet customers will see the updated store name in a future build, but video and music content will still be only available via the separate Music Store and Video Store applications on the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet.
  • Customers on BlackBerry OS smartphones (OS 5, 6, 7 and 7.1) will also see the updated name and continue to benefit from new titles as they are developed for the BlackBerry OS platform, however the video and music content will not be available.
  • The BlackBerry App World web store will become the BlackBerry World web store before the launch event on January 30, 2013
• Deep link URLs are not changing – the same appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/[appid] URLs that you use today will continue to work

I personally can’t wait to share our music and video plans with you – and we’ll have more on this in January!

Here’s the full press release:

BlackBerry App World Integrated Carrier Billing Now Implemented with More Than 50 Carriers

Benefits of integrated carrier billing extend to carriers, developers, content providers, and customers

Waterloo, ON – November 26, 2012 – Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today announced that more than 50 carriers have now implemented integrated carrier billing on the BlackBerry App World™ storefront for their customers. The announcement marks a great milestone for RIM, and a big benefit for carriers, developers, content providers, and customers.

Integrated carrier billing enables a customer to purchase apps or digital goods on their BlackBerry smartphone, and simply and conveniently have the purchases put directly on their regular monthly bill from their carrier. Integrated carrier billing is also integrated with the BlackBerry Payment Service, which enables developers and content providers to offer in-app purchases (such as additional levels in a game), as well as supporting one-off and recurring (subscription-based) purchases, without interrupting the customer’s app experience.

Carrier billing services have proven to drive significant value for the whole mobile ecosystem, including carriers, developers, content providers, and customers. Aggregated data indicates that customers’ propensity to purchase apps on BlackBerry App World increases when carrier billing is offered, with an average of 75% of gross sales transacted through the carrier and average carrier revenues derived from apps increased between 100%-300% after launch.

Ronjon Nag, Vice President for the BlackBerry App World storefront at RIM, said, “We’re delighted to announce that over 50 of our carrier partners are now offering integrated carrier billing to customers on BlackBerry App World. We remain committed to developing innovative ways to support our carrier partners, while providing a platform that benefits the whole mobile ecosystem.”

Ray Anderson, CEO, Bango, whose mobile payment platform enables charge-to-bill payments in BlackBerry App World, said, “Our relationship with RIM goes from strength to strength and we’re delighted to see the integrated carrier billing experience Bango enables on BlackBerry smartphones in the hands of more and more customers. We’ve seen smartphone users rely increasingly on the ability to charge the costs of digital goods to their carrier bill, and with RIM, we’re providing them with a frictionless payment experience.”

Dario Talmesio, Principal Analyst, Informa Telecoms & Media, said, “Mobile operators recognize that RIM works closely and constructively with them and with more than 50 operators now offering integrated carrier billing it’s a great milestone that shows these relationships are productive. Mobile operators recognize the business benefits this service provides and the opportunities for repeated customer engagement on BlackBerry App World.”

BlackBerry App World is now available in 170 markets and territories worldwide offering more than 100,000 BlackBerry smartphone apps.

For a complete listing of carriers offering integrated billing on BlackBerry App World please visit: https://developer.blackberry.com/devzone/appworld

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About Research In Motion
Research In Motion (RIM), a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionised the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry® solution in 1999. Today, BlackBerry products and services are used by millions of customers around the world to stay connected to the people and content that matter most throughout their day. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. RIM is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM). For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.

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