Citing anonymous sources at RIM’s manufacturing partner Quanta, Collins Stewart analyst John Vinh is indicating that Research In Motion may be considering exiting the tablet market after halting BlackBerry PlayBook production. In a research note, he writes:
“While Quanta last week acknowledged that it had laid off a significant number of production workers from a factory focused on producing the PlayBook, our research indicates that the ODM has essentially halted production of the tablet. Additionally, our due diligence indicates that RIMM has canceled development of additional tablet projects.”
After shipping some 500,000 PlayBooks in its debut quarter, RIM only shipped an additional 200,000 units in the second quarter that it has been available.
RIM has not responded to the report.
Update: RIM has now responded, calling the report “pure fiction.” It also added that it “remains highly committed to the tablet market.”
Read more about this story: Original story and RIM’s response