BBM for Android

BBM for Android and iPhone release date postponed following software leak

BlackBerry confirms worldwide release of BBM for Android and iPhone is unlikely to resume this week.

BlackBerry has confirmed the official version of its BBM for Android and iPhone is unlikely to be released this week, much to the disappointment of many users across the globle.
The software failed to make its debut on Android and iPhone devices this weekend as expected, after the smartphone maker was forced to postpone the release after a leaked version of the software appeared online.
The beleaguered smartphone maker announced last week that Android users would be able to download the app on Saturday 21 September, while iPhone fans would have to wait until the following day to get access to the messaging service.
However, the firm was forced to hold off on its release plans for the app after an incomplete version of BBM for Android appeared online hours before its official launch. The app was downloaded by more than 1.1 million people during its first eight hours of availability.
In a statement, BlackBerry said it was heartened by the initial response to the release, despite the issues it has caused.As a result, it confirmed that the worldwide rollout of the software for both iPhone and Android users has now been put on hold.
"Customers who have already downloaded BBM for iPhone will be able to continue to use BBM. The unreleased Android app will be disabled, and customers who downloaded it should visit www.BBM.com to register for updates on official BBM for Android availability," the statement continued.
"As soon as we are able, we will begin a staggered country rollout of BBM for Android and continue the rollout of BBM for iPhone," it concluded.
In a follow up statement today, Andrew Bocking, head of BBM at BlackBerry, shed some further light on the technical issues caused by the unofficial, older release.
"This older version resulted in volumes of data traffic orders of magnitude higher than normal for each active user and impacted the system in abnormal ways," he explained.
"The version we were planning to release on Saturday addressed these issues, however we could not block users of the unreleased version if we went ahead with the launch."
As a result, the software is unlikely to see the light of day this week, as his team works to get the unreleased version taken out of circulation.
"We are also making sure that the system is reinforced to handle this kind of scenario in the future. While this may sound like a simple task – it’s not. This will take some time and I do not anticipate launching this week," he added.
Reports had previously suggested that BlackBerry was gunning for a summer launch, for both Apple and Android, but this failed to materialise.