Investing lessons from BlackBerry

The release of BlackBerry’s (TSX:BB) pager in 1999 followed by its first smartphone in 2000 revolutionised the corporate world. Allowing busy professionals to check their email when away from their desks, BlackBerries became so popular that they spawned the nickname ‘CrackBerries’. Between early 1999 and mid-2008 BlackBerry’s shares had increased more than 90 times. Yet the company’s fall was even more spectacular. Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone was released in 2007, allowing users to not only call and email but surf the internet and use thousands of other applications. It quickly took market share from BlackBerry and has helped Apple’s share price increase more than 10 times since early 2007. In contrast, BlackBerry’s share price has fallen by more than 90% since its 2008 high. Here are some of the investing lessons from these dramatic changes in corporate fortune. (VIEW LINK)