BlackBerry blackout resolved, RIM’s Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis say they’re really sorry
Media punching bags and RIM co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis confirmed in a 10 a.m. conference call that full, global BlackBerry service was restored early this morning, ending the three-day blackout. The company’s larger problems, however, are another story.
The announcement came just three hours after Lazaridis posted a dour apology to YouTube. Even with such a short gap between the video and the all-clear, Lazaridis said on tape that he couldn’t provide an estimated time of recovery with any certainty. “It’s been my goal to provide reliable, real-time communications around the world,” he said in a plainspoken fashion, directly to the camera. “We did not deliver on this goal this week. Not even close. I apologize…You expect better from us, and I expect better from us.”
Addressing outrage over the delayed response, the pair explained that they were simply too busy managing the repairs, and that “nobody” has gone home since the problems arose. Now that the company’s reputation has taken such a savage beating (Blackberry outage jokes quickly became a popular pastime on Twitter), Lazaridis said RIM is working to regain consumer trust and will be fielding complaints and calls for compensation soon.
No word yet on how the company plans to deal with the beating it’s taking on the stock market. But we suspect fielding complaints, compensation and a YouTube mea culpa won’t quite cut it.
I’m iempsrsed. You’ve really raised the bar with that.