Research In Motion Ltd (BBRY): Ex-Apple Inc. (AAPL) CEO Has Some Advice

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) is in a tough spot. Just when it looked like the company was starting to make a turnaround when it turned a profit in its February quarterly earning report and there was some buzz over the new BlackBerry 10 operating system, there were some impressions that perhaps BlackBerry was ready to get back in the mobile game and once again be a player in the market.

But then, the May quarter happened, and Research In  Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) did not just hiccup on its way to a comeback; it ran into a ditch by dramatically missing analysts’ estimates. It wasn’t even close – a projected EPS of 6 cents per share was actually reported as a loss of 13 cents. If you are John Sculley, you are glad you are not Thorsten Heins right now.

But Sculley, former CEO at Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and a longtime fan of the BlackBerry by Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY), is certainly willing to do a little armchair quarterbacking, if the current BlackBerry CEO, Heins, ever decides he needs a hug and some advice.

Mr. Heins is certainly not in a very enviable position, having just captained the BlackBerry ship against an iceberg when it looked like it was sailing toward the Equator.

In the most recent quarterly report, which was the catalyst for Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) shares losing virtually all the growth they had in 2013, the company reportedly sold about 6 million units, but less than half of those were running the new BlackBerry 10 platform (which during the quarter consisted of the premium-priced flagship devices, the touchscreen-only Z10 and the Q10 with the QWERTY keyboard). And the total number of BlackBerry 10 devices sold – about 2.7 million  – missed analysts’ reasonable estimates by 25 percent.

Time for the hug, eh Mr. Heins?

Well, as it seems that Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) may be fading into irrelevance in the smartphone battles, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s Mr. Sculley may give you that hug, but he also revealed what his advice would be to BlackBerry had he the chance to put his arm around Mr. Heins and talk to him over a cup of coffee. What do you think the advice would be that would keep BlackBerry in business in mobile?