On its second-quarter earnings call today, RIM outlined a number of steps it will take in a bid to turn around the PlayBook’s fortunes after revealing that it had shipped only 200,000 units of its QNX-powered tablet in its last fiscal quarter. Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis said that RIM will offer a number of promotions to increase sales, including incentives for businesses, rebates, and loyalty rewards for existing users.
Lazaridis also confirmed that a major software update was coming. PlayBook 2.0 will include the eagerly anticipated native e-mail, calendar, and contacts apps, the Android App Player, BlackBerry Balance (which helps separate personal from work content) and improvements to BlackBerry Bridge.
RIM will also launch its own movie service called the BlackBerry Video Store. It promises some 10,000 movies and TV shows with movies being available the same day as DVD releases.
Lazaridis indicated that PlayBook 2.0 would be unveiled at the upcoming BlackBerry DevCon in mid-October. The update (including the movie service) would then be released not long after.
Will it be enough or will the PlayBook be joining the HP TouchPad and others in the tablet graveyard?