This IDC Event Flash portrays IDC Indonesia's initial thoughts on the impact BlackBerry 10 will have on the Indonesian market. The analysis in this Event Flash was based on the BlackBerry 10 launch event held in Jakarta on March 4, 2013, as well as follow-up discussions held with partners and vendors present.

Jakarta, March 5, 2012 – BlackBerry 10 clearly sees the Indonesian market as a crucial country of growth within its transformation plans. Citing specific instances of "re-engineering" and "transformation" within the organization, BlackBerry is confident that it has released a phone, which is formidable enough to re-invigorate its business within one of the world's key BlackBerry markets. With a launch price of close to US$700, it is obvious BlackBerry is targeting a more "mature" smart phone user segment, and loyalists who have been awaiting this moment ever since the delay in the product launch from the previous year.

"BlackBerry had some keen success in the Indonesian market over the past few years, as their products and models fit nicely into the needs of Indonesians. At present, we believe the impact of BlackBerry 10 will be fairly contained to loyalists as the smart phone landscape has evolved dramatically over the past year", says Sudev Bangah, Associate Director and Head of Operations, IDC Indonesia.

The demand for smart phones is increasing, and IDC estimates that 14% of the forecasted 60 million mobile devices shipped in Indonesia for 2013 will be smart phones. BlackBerry has been fairly quiet in the Indonesian market all of last year, and in the meantime, its competitors have begun to spread and increased their mindshare in an ever growing information hungry country.

While the launch of many "lower priced" Android devices in the market can be suggested as a disruptor - the market segmentation is obviously different. At present, IDC expects loyalists to be the first group of individuals awaiting the March 15 availability of the product, while a little bit more advocacy on the "experience" will be required for device substitution to occur.

BlackBerry is attempting to re-energise themselves in the Indonesian market, and based on the launch event, they have done seemingly well to create the hype - but the crucial point is to follow up on this momentum in a market, which has evolved drastically over the course of the year becoming one that is more applications driven and, with the exception of firm BlackBerry believers, a fairly fickle one at the same time.

For more information about IDC’s research, please contact Sudev Bangah at +6221-520-3496 or sbangah@idc.com. To set up an interview with Sudev Bangah, contact Agita Saraswati +6221-520-3496 or asaraswati@idc.com .

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