SEOUL—BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. will roll out its "PlayBook" tablet computer at a price of under $500, the company confirmed Wednesday.
The product will be introduced in North America in the first quarter, with a global launch scheduled for the second quarter of 2011, the company's co-chief executive, Jim Balsillie, said in an interview Wednesday.
"There's a lot of demand and we are seeing a lot of interest from international retailers," Mr. Balsillie said on the sidelines of the Group of 20 business summit in Seoul.
While the executive declined to comment on carrier partners or a specific price for the device, Research in Motion confirmed the PlayBook will sell for under $500. Mr. Balsillie said that, in Asia, South Korea and Japan will be key markets for the firm to sell the tablet computer.
PlayBook, a 7-inch tablet computer, will run on a new operating system built by QNX Software Systems, a Research in Motion unit that makes software used to run everything from cars to nuclear reactors. Research in Motion bought QNX earlier this year, and has been working to adapt the software for mobile phones.
The device will be equipped with a one-gigahertz dual-core processor and also features front—and rear-facing cameras and the ability to do video conferencing. Unlike Apple Inc.'s iPad, the PlayBook supports Adobe Systems Inc.'s Flash technology. Flash is used to power many videos and applications on the Internet.
Research in Motion, known for its Blackberry device, is seeking to grab a piece of the fast-growing but competitive tablet market. Last week, Samsung Electronics Co. said it aims to sell more than one million of its Galaxy Tab tablet computers by the end of this year and is looking to launch other sizes. Apple has so far sold more than seven million iPad units.
Mr. Balsillie dismissed concerns when asked whether the Canadian firm may be losing corporate customers as they look to switch to other smartphones—notably Apple's iPhone and other phones powered by Google Inc.'s Android software.
"No [we are not losing corporate customers]. There's always competition and evaluation for enterprises, [but] we still have a super strong base and it's still growing...it's going to grow faster with this tablet," Mr. Balsillie said.
He also said that he expects Research in Motion's global market share in mobile operating systems to surpass Apple's in the coming quarters. "We just finished our third quarter now...we will be pass them [Apple] and we will stay past them," he said.
But data Wednesday from research firm Gartner Inc. showed the global market share of Apple's iOS software increased to 16.7% in the third quarter, jumping ahead of Research in Motion's 14.8%.
In order to withstand fierce competition, Research in Motion is also preparing to launch various smartphone models next year, Mr. Balsillie said, without providing further details about the devices.
PlayBook, a 7-inch tablet computer, will run on a new operating system built by QNX Software Systems, a Research in Motion unit that makes software used to run everything from cars to nuclear reactors. Research in Motion bought QNX earlier this year, and has been working to adapt the software for mobile phones.
The device will be equipped with a one-gigahertz dual-core processor and also features front—and rear-facing cameras and the ability to do video conferencing. Unlike Apple Inc.'s iPad, the PlayBook supports Adobe Systems Inc.'s Flash technology. Flash is used to power many videos and applications on the Internet.
Research in Motion, known for its Blackberry device, is seeking to grab a piece of the fast-growing but competitive tablet market. Last week, Samsung Electronics Co. said it aims to sell more than one million of its Galaxy Tab tablet computers by the end of this year and is looking to launch other sizes. Apple has so far sold more than seven million iPad units.
Mr. Balsillie dismissed concerns when asked whether the Canadian firm may be losing corporate customers as they look to switch to other smartphones—notably Apple's iPhone and other phones powered by Google Inc.'s Android software.
"No [we are not losing corporate customers]. There's always competition and evaluation for enterprises, [but] we still have a super strong base and it's still growing...it's going to grow faster with this tablet," Mr. Balsillie said.
He also said that he expects Research in Motion's global market share in mobile operating systems to surpass Apple's in the coming quarters. "We just finished our third quarter now...we will be pass them [Apple] and we will stay past them," he said.
But data Wednesday from research firm Gartner Inc. showed the global market share of Apple's iOS software increased to 16.7% in the third quarter, jumping ahead of Research in Motion's 14.8%.
In order to withstand fierce competition, Research in Motion is also preparing to launch various smartphone models next year, Mr. Balsillie said, without providing further details about the devices.
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