The Z10 Blackberry (Image credit: AFP/Getty Images via @daylife)
You can't bring your own device to work if you have a security clearance. So it should be no surprise that mobile devices are adapted and 'hardened' for use by Government officials. Bloomberg reports today about CACI International and their program to adapt the Apple iPad, both through software and hardware modifications to the device.
I wonder if this voids Applecare, or if Cupertino are on board with these customisations?
In any case, the the biggest impact of this program is not on Apple's side, or the Government. It's with BlackBerry. During the glory years of the BlackBerry, the Canadian company provided a significant number of smartphones - at one point over 99% of handsets use in the House of Representatives were BlackBerries, and during 2012 there were an estimated one million BlackBerry users on the Federal payroll.
The competition is catching up. Apple's iOS devices are picking up remote wiping and encryption even before CACI get their hands on the devices, hardened Android kernels are being developed, and Microsoft is targeting Windows Phone at passing the certification process required by the Department of Defence.
Unlike the churn of consumer contracts, government contracts are far more stable and long lasting, with a number of benefits - not least predictable cash flow. As BlackBerry returns to the smartphone arena with BB10, the stability of Uncle Sam would be very much appreciated. In fact, the BlackBerry management ensured that BB10 passed the same certification Windows Phone is looking at (FIPS 140-2) so the new handsets would be eligible for classified use.
BlackBerry cannot count on a significant block purchase of the Q10 and Z10 smartphones from the Government as they return to the marketplace. While the number of handsets this represents would not have a marked impact in the market share numbers, it would represent a significant number of BlackBerry devices that can be considered 'sold' before they leave the factory.
Unfortunately the low hanging fruit that drove the adoption of BlackBerries and pushed it into the public conscious (at least in America) has already been picked by Apple.
BlackBerry cannot chase market share, they must chase unit sales. If they can generate the same shipments as they did just a few years ago, they will have a viable business that can thrive and expand, that can be used to develop new handsets, and to build on the BB10 platform. But that's going to take far more effort, focus, and determination this time around without the safety net of Uncle Sam.
