Research In Motion posted the most devastating earnings report in its history, announcing a half-billion dollar loss

In a world flagrant with the failures of civilization, what is there particularly immortal about our own?  ~G.K. Chesterton:

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Research In Motion Ltd. has posted the most devastating earnings report in its history, announcing a half-billion dollar loss, 5,000 layoffs and yet another delay to its single-most important product line.

So bad is the news that it has become debatable whether the company that invented the smartphone will even manage to release its much-hyped new phones before it is forced to take more radical measures, such as splitting itself up or selling to a larger player.

On almost every metric, RIM's first-quarter results were far worse than analysts expected. The company posted a net loss of $518-million (U.S.), or 99 cents per share. Revenue dropped by 33 per cent from the previous quarter, to $2.8-billion. BlackBerry shipments also dropped during the same period to 7.8 million, from 13.2 million. Shares dropped as much as 17 per cent in after-hours trading on Thursday's earnings announcement, continuing a year-long freefall that reflects the shattered confidence among investors.