BBM, bling, and boardrooms: The Blackberry that ruled the world

There was a time, not long ago, when the choice of smartphone wasn’t just about specs or camera megapixels. It was about identity. And if you had a Blackberry, it told the world you were important. You were busy. You were in the loop.

In the days before iOS and Android devoured the smartphone market, Blackberry wasn’t just dominant – it was a cultural phenomenon. From Obama to Kim Kardashian, from Bollywood stars to business moguls, Blackberry was the global badge of success and connection.

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So how did this little Canadian device become a worldwide status symbol? And why did it fall so hard, so fast?

Let’s scroll back to the glory days of BBM and beyond.

The early days: Business before buzz

When Research in Motion (RIM), a modest Canadian tech firm founded by Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin in 1984, launched the first BlackBerry device in 1999, it wasn’t aimed at hipsters or celebrities.

The BlackBerry 850 pager was designed for corporate users and journalists, offering wireless email - an unheard-of innovation at the time.

Push-email was BlackBerry’s first killer feature. It revolutionised how executives and professionals worked.

Soon, the devices evolved to include voice calls and full QWERTY keyboards, offering an unmatched messaging experience. The tactile keyboard and secure email became indispensable in a world still reliant on desktop computers.

The ‘CrackBerry’ era: A cultural phenomenon

By the mid-2000s, BlackBerry wasn’t just a business tool, it was a badge of success. C-suite executives, bankers, journalists, and politicians swore by their BB devices. The addictive quality of the real-time messaging (first email, then the now-legendary BlackBerry Messenger aka BBM) earned it the nickname “CrackBerry.”

At its peak in 2009-2010, BlackBerry commanded over 20% of the global smartphone market, with 85 million subscribers.

In India too, the brand had a cult following. For professionals in Mumbai’s Nariman Point or Delhi’s Connaught Place, no phone matched the BlackBerry’s work utility and prestige.

Yet even the suits couldn’t hold onto BlackBerry alone for long. Soon, it caught the fancy of the youth, and popular culture.

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BlackBerry and pop culture: Bling, drama, and BBM pins

Globally, BlackBerry seeped into celebrity culture with ease. Pharrell flaunted an 18-karat gold-plated BlackBerry in 2006, crafted by Jacob the Jeweller. Beyoncé famously admitted she slept with her BlackBerry while recording her album 4. In the Hollywood-LA party circuit of the mid-2000s, BBM PIN exchanges replaced phone numbers.

Paris Hilton once denied hacking Lindsay Lohan’s BlackBerry in a classic mid-2000s tabloid feud. Lana Del Rey even recorded a song called BBM Baby (“I be BBM’in you…”), an anthem for a bygone era of digital flirtation.

On TV, BlackBerry became a staple: Gossip Girl, The Hills, and even the cultish Pretty Wild scene (“Nancy Jo, this is Alexis Neiers calling!”) all featured BlackBerry prominently. It was the “it” phone of the Y2K and 2010s culture.

And then there was India.

The Indian wave: From boardrooms to college campuses

In India, BlackBerry was initially associated with top corporate executives. But that changed dramatically with one iconic ad campaign: We’re the BlackBerry Boys.

In the late 2000s, Vodafone India spotted a cultural shift - BlackBerry was becoming a youth status symbol, thanks to BBM. To capitalise, Vodafone launched prepaid BlackBerry packages, making it affordable to students and first-jobbers.

Ogilvy’s brilliant “We’re the BlackBerry Boys” campaign poked fun at the older corporate types lamenting that “their” exclusive phone had become mainstream. The jingle went viral, spreading like wildfire on social media and WhatsApp forwards (ironically!).

It wasn’t just an ad - it was a cultural moment. Overnight, BBM PINs became the new currency of college cool in metros like Mumbai, Bangalore, and Delhi.

Why BlackBerry worked: A UX masterclass in messaging

Why did BlackBerry dominate even after the iPhone arrived? Simple: Messaging.

- The clicky QWERTY keyboards made emails and texts fast and satisfying.

- BBM was a closed, secure network, like WhatsApp before WhatsApp.

- Push-email via BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) was years ahead of its time.

Steve Jobs himself referenced BlackBerry’s email system as the gold standard during the iPhone launch.

BlackBerry also excelled in security - an obsession among governments, corporates, and privacy-conscious celebs alike. Its utilitarian UI and delightful trackball navigation prioritised functionality over flash.

Owning a BlackBerry was about joining a tribe - the device conferred professional credibility and cultural cachet in equal measure.

The downfall: Touchscreens, app stores, and missed signals

But even the mightiest brands can fall. BlackBerry’s undoing came down to:

- The iPhone’s App Store: Apple turned the phone into an app-centric device for all.

- Android’s open ecosystem: Brands like Samsung scaled fast and cheap.

- BlackBerry’s arrogance: Leadership dismissed touchscreens as a fad.

- Software stagnation: BlackBerry OS couldn’t match iOS and Android’s UX.

Their touchscreen effort - BlackBerry Storm - flopped. By the time they embraced Android with the BlackBerry Priv, it was too late. The market had moved on.

The unforgettable legacy

BlackBerry phones stopped shipping in 2016, though a Texas startup briefly revived them. Today, BlackBerry Ltd focuses on cybersecurity, enterprise software, and its QNX systems in millions of cars.

Yet the cultural imprint remains:

- Kim Kardashian stocked up on BlackBerry Bold units after its discontinuation.

- Alicia Keys (briefly) served as BlackBerry’s Global Creative Director (awkwardly tweeting from an iPhone).

- Nostalgia for BBM and QWERTY keyboards still thrives in online communities.

The story of BlackBerry is one of bold innovation, cultural resonance, and the brutal realities of tech disruption. It taught us that being first isn’t enough; staying first requires relentless adaptation.

In India, it democratized mobile internet access and gave a generation its first taste of messaging addiction. Globally, it became shorthand for hustle culture and celebrity gossip. Its DNA - security-first messaging, typing-first UX - lives on in today’s smartphones.

So next time you swipe away on your glass screen, remember: there was a time when being a BlackBerry Boy (or girl) was the coolest thing in the room.

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