Former Apple executive accuses Blackberry Maker RIM of “wilful misrepresentation”, predicts lawsuits

The former president of Apple’s products division, Jean-Louis Gassée, has attacked embattled BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, accusing the company of misrepresentation.

RIM chief executive Thorsten Heins recently stated, “There’s nothing wrong with the company as it exists right now”, following the announcement of a $US518 million quarterly loss.

Heins’ comments came despite RIM’s next generation BlackBerry 10 platform being delayed until next year, the loss of key enterprise customers, significant losses in marketshare to Apple and Samsung, and mounting speculation of a possible separation of the company.

In response to Heins’ comments, Gassée told The New York Times: “They’re going to get sued, and they should get sued, because I think a closer look at the record is likely to unearth knowing and wilful misrepresentation”.

“When the CEO says there’s nothing wrong with the company as it is, it’s not cautious, it doesn’t make sense.”

RIM issued a statement denying Gassée’s accusations, stating: “RIM is well aware of its disclosure obligations under applicable securities laws and is committed to providing a high level of transparency, as evidenced by RIM’s decision to issue an interim business update on May 29, 2012, to alert shareholders that it expected to report an operating loss.”