Will RIM's BlackBerry 10 OS Topple Android and iOS, Sell Platform Licenses?

There's no question that iOS and Android both have a firm grip on the global smartphone market, but RIM's resurgent BlackBerry 10 platform hopes to break free of their tyranny and topple the giants which once overcame the odds and slayed the Blackberry behemoth in its heyday. How, you ask? Apps, apps, and more apps. Reduced from a king to a peasant by the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy S series, the BlackBerry brand has been humbled, and now steadily builds a staircase to its rivals' perch, strapped to the backs of developers as they port software and answer the call to craft new apps for the BlackBerry 10's Jan. 30 launch.

To drum up support for the new BlackBerry OS, Research in Motion pulled out a carrot on a stick to the tune of $500,000. At least, that's how much money was available to any developer who submits an app port to the App World Store during promotional weekends for $100 apiece. RIM has held such an event a handful of times, reports ZDNet.

The company's 'Built for BlackBerry' initiative has been extended as well, according to a recent press release. Due to an overwhelming backlog of submissions, RIM has extended the app development drive until Feb. 18. ZDNet explains that "any developer who submitted a qualifying app that was deemed 'Built for BlackBerry' would qualify for inclusion in its $10,000 Developer Commitment, which means as long as an app earns at least $1,000 on the store, RIM will make up the difference up to $10,000."

In an interview with German publication Die Welt, RIM CEO Thorstein Heins suggests that once the platform takes off and proves its worth, licensing may follow (via The Register). "First we have to fulfill our promises. If we do, licensing is conceivable," says the exec.

The Wall Street Journal Market Watch notes that the alternative of selling RIM to its competitors appears "unlikely" to analysts, "Given the ongoing price negotiations between RIM and carriers on services fees, we think it would be nearly impossible for a financial or strategic buyer to currently value RIM's services annuity," they reportedly said.