IT’S OFFICIAL. BlackBerry, once the giant of the smartphone world and the nemesis of every holidaying chief executive, is now little more than an app developer – albeit a very successful one.

As its updated BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) app for Android and iPhone finally went live (a month after leaked software botched the original launch), some 10m owners of rival handsets rushed to download the messaging service.

BlackBerry was quick to herald the launch as “one of the best single-day openings for a mobile app to date” – and with some impatient users complaining of long delays downloading the service, chances are that the number could go even higher.

But the Canadian firm, which saw sales slump by almost 50 per cent in its second quarter compared to last year, has some way to go before it scales the true heights of app success. Apple’s all-time best sellers include the Angry Birds series, which has sold around 2bn apps, and Tiny Wings. Sensing a theme – and having checked out the new, simple BBM interface – the Capitalist has a suggestion for BlackBerry that could just turn things around.

Ditch the fruit, and get a bird on board – sharpish.

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