RIM announces launch date of BlackBerry 10 devices

Research in Motion (RIM) has announced that it will launch four BlackBerry 10 smartphones, two high-end models and two mid-range models, early next year. This marks the first time that RIM has provided specifics about the number of BlackBerry 10 devices it will launch.

This comes as the only good news as investors of the company who voiced their displeasures during the meeting. Barbara Stymiest, company chairwoman, has promised investors that the company will make changes to its board of directors. She also stated that the company has hired an outside search firm to help with the process. Multiple reports state that investors attending the meeting blamed the board for the company's rapid decline in both revenues and market share.

In the past year, RIM has appointed three new board members and promoted Thorsten Heins to CEO. It has also hired a new chief marketing officer and a chief operating officer.

During the annual meeting, Heins and Stymiest tried to put a positive spin on several of the company's latest developments, including the announcement last week that RIM's highly anticipated BlackBerry 10 smartphones would be delayed until 2013, rather than released at year-end. Heins said that many wireless operators are pleased with the delay because they will not be unveiling their higher-speed networks until next year and would not be able to fully exploit the BlackBerry 10 advancements.

He also said that the company now expects to post another operating loss in the current quarter, following a large loss reported at the end of first quarter, which ended in June.