RIM faces uphill comeback, lays off 5,000

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WATERLOO, Ontario, June 29 (UPI) -- Canadian technology firm Research in Motion said it would cut 5,000 jobs after reporting quarterly losses for the first time since 2004.

The firm that pioneered the smartphone said its revenues dropped 33 percent in the quarterly report released this week.

The Globe and Mail Friday said RIM posted a net loss of $518 million in the quarter with revenues of $2.8 billion.

"This is nothing short of a complete disaster," said Kris Thompson, an analyst with National Bank Financial who specializes in technology firms.

The newspaper quoted one RIM employee as saying, "No one is surprised. My team did have a moment of silence for the 5,000 cuts, which is pretty somber, as there was never much communication regarding how deep those would run."

Other industry experts are concerned about whether or not the firm that launched the first successful smartphone can become competitive again.

"They had one hope -- one -- and that was to make Blackberry the greatest thing since sliced bread and get it out on time. Clearly, they have failed," said Kerry Morrison, chief executive officer of Endloop, a software developer.

"With stiff competition and a complete lack of marketplace trust, zombie Steve Jobs couldn't fix RIM," Morrison said.