Attempting to Revitalize Brand, RIM Changes Name to BlackBerry

Research in Motion (RIM), the once-dominant smartphone firm, has officially named itself after its flagship product. At the BlackBerry 10 OS launch event today in New York City, CEO Thorsten Heins announced that, going forward, the company will be known simply as “BlackBerry.”

RIM Changes Name to BlackBerry

The change was spurred by the company’s attempt to revitalize its brand and recover market share after suffering major losses to Apple and Google platforms over the past five years. Mr. Heins argued that because RIM was known around the world primarily for its BlackBerry smartphones, it made sense to change the name and unify the brand. The company’s tagline is now “One brand. One promise.”

Stock watchers should take note that the name change also comes with a change in stock symbol. RIMM will soon be listed as “BBRY” on the NASDAQ and “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The BlackBerry 10 event is still underway and RIMM is currently trading at $15.02, down $0.70 (4.35 percent).

Image via The Verge.