Here comes the BlackBerry Application Storefront

The BlackBerry Bold and Storm models have already swept southward into the US like some of those classic, cold Canadian currents, but neither model has performed in the market to the potential that analysts have expected. The number one and two reason folks use BlackBerry, it's believed, are for secure e-mail and for practical applications. But it's in that number two category that BlackBerry is perceived to be falling behind the iPhone and even Symbian, and now manufacturer Research in Motion is working to do something about that.

This week, RIM is accepting applications from third-party developers for their software to appear on what's being called the BlackBerry Application Storefront. This will be a tricky concept to pull off, particularly for RIM, since unlike Apple, RIM has maintained relationships with its supporting carriers for exclusive apps distribution. So while there will be one "main" portal, RIM is arranging with its supporting carriers -- like Rogers and Bell in Canada -- to enable their own "flavors" of the Storefront.

That said, a peek at RIM's guidelines this morning indicates that RIM will be the one in charge, deciding which applications are appropriate for the general public. There will apparently be a limit on specialization -- on how much any one application targets a niche group, which makes sense. Apps must be developed on either the exclusive BlackBerry Java Development Environment (JDE), or the Java plug-in for Eclipse.