Marauding Hordes and Herd Mentality

For years you could watch people in airports coo over their Blackberry. People would compare features, holsters, and the latest models. Newest models asserted status on the owners.

Now, the "market value" of RIM has dropped from its high of $70 billion to $13 billion. Staff are being laid off. Analysts are expecting a takeover.

Is the Blackberry any less functional? Is it still not secure and useful and a great productivity tool?

Will the herd mentality and the opinions of stock market analysts doom the company? Hope not.

There is something wrong when market sentiment can materially harm a viable, technically excellent, and socially-conscious organisation all for the sake of return on investment. Nortel was a world-leader with huge R&D investment. To meet expectations they cut costs drastically and destroyed their R&D. Where are they now?

This is not a testament to RIM or a diatribe about markets... Well, maybe it is. But it is sad that forces immaterial to the purpose and mission of a company can be harmed by tangential forces. I do recall that a while back Apple was in a similar state. They survived and thrive. Maybe this event will be one of those "troughs of disillusionment" that's short-lived. Time will tell.