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Research In Motion EssayResearch In Motion ( run along) is most excellently knows for its smart phone device berry. Blackberry, when first introduced in 1999, took the corporate market by storm because of its aptitude of storing and managing netmails along with some separate professional tools. Later the introduction of Black Berry Messenger (BBM) was another thriving addition and made it famous among the non-corporate user class all around the globe. From its inception to the introduction of Blackberry and until today, coast has had various challenges in terms of safeguarding its intellectual property and took nearly steps to counteract those problems which I will be discussing in this paper. 1.What were some of the challenges that sassing faced to protect its intellectual property, and how did coast administer those challenges?The first challenge for rim was in 2001 when it claimed that its competitor Glenayre Electronics infringed on its patent and charged dilutio n, unfair competition, and put on advertising (1). As a result RIM sued them over using its patented mailbox desegregation technique that was exclusive to its Blackberry smartphone device which was later settled in their favor (2). Another guinea pig filed by RIM was against Good Technology in 2002. RIM alleged that Good was infringing on quatern of its patents.The first is for a method and apparatus to remotely control gateway functions in a radio set data communications network. The second relates to a method and system for loading an application program on a device. The third relates to a method and system for transmitting data files between computers in a wireless data communications environment. And the fourth relates to a mobile device that is optimized for use with thumbs (3). Finally in 2004 Good Technology signed a settlement with RIM under which it will give RIM a lump-sum payment during its current quarter and ongoing quarterly royalties. Further financial details of the apprehension were not disclosed (4).Later in 2006, RIM was sued by mobile e-mail provider Visto sens that RIM violated four of its patents. The patents in question relate to the accessing and synchronizing of information over a network and are fundamental to the BlackBerry service (5). After a long battle of 3 years, in 2009 RIM agreed to pay $267.5 million to settle this dispute adding to a costly serial of intellectual-property purchases (6). The company spent more than $1 billion in the past two years on intangible assets, such as patents. It booked part of the cost of the Visto settlement, which gave them a lifetime license to some Visto patents and legal possession of others, as an acquisition of intangible assets (6).Another big event was the RIM-Motorolla lawsuits in 2008 when Motorolla filed a lawsuit against RIM for using its patented technology merely in reply RIM sued grit Motorolla. RIM filed the lawsuit for demanding exorbitant royalties on patents that were essential to RIMs business. Besides being impeach of anti-competitive conduct, Motorola was also accused of violating nine different patents and for breaking a 2003 agreement by refusing to agree to new terms beyond January 2008. Adding injury to lawsuit, RIM also claimed that Motorolas licensing fees were due to declining fortunes of its handset business (7).This long battle came to an end when some(prenominal) companies settled out of court. Under the Agreement, Motorola and RIM will benefit from a long-term, intellectual property cross-licensing governance involving the parties receiving cross-licenses of various patent rights, including patent rights relating to certain industry standards and certain technologies, such as 2G, 3G, 4G, 802.11 and wireless email. In addition, the parties will transfer certain patents to each other (8).2.What were some of the industry factors that influenced RIM?Industry factors that influenced RIM are Competition, Scale and Future (9). Patents, copyrights and trademarks help a firm safeguard its intellectual assets giving it an ring in the market and enabling to stay competitive in the market. From the lawsuits discussed above, we can see that just in 10 years on inception, RIM had over seven patent related issues for its technology. In technological field, a patent enables a firm to bank on its technology by not allowing other firms to use and produce it. So it enables the firm with the patent to fix exclusive right to that technology and have a competitive advantage. When a firms technology is successful, patent enables that firm to exploit from it and thereof expand their firms scale by securing a larger consumer base leading to a better lustrous future for the firm.3.Apply as many TCOs as you can to the RIM.There are quite a fewer TCOs that can be applied to RIM. Competence Enhancing and Component Innovation applies very well to RIM. Looking at the introduction of Blackberry in 1999, afterward 14 years we still find them have a strong demand among the smartphone consumer base. So RIM has constantly been improving its blackberry phones keeping them up to look by providing new features that keep the consumer base attracted. Similarly if we look at introduction of features like e-mail service and BBM for blackberry, they are following the component innovation ideology discussed in the course.On the other hand, RIM also follows the concept Network Externalities. BBM can be a good example to support this. Anyone with a blackberry anywhere in the world can send a free message to the other blackberry user using the blackberry network. BBM is actually one of the features that has protected Blackberry against I-phone. Tying to BBM, RIM also follows the policy of Trade Secret because no one other than the corporation itself has access to the BBM data. RIM has gone to an extent that recently in India, even the government was not allowed to access the BBM data and after a 19 month service ban the gov ernment, RIM finally allowed them to have access but through a different server (10).