BlackBerry Is a Failed State

John Herrman, writing for BuzzFeed:

At the time of writing, the primary storefront of App World is overgrown and infested with low-quality products and bad omens. Among the most popular is Windows Live Messenger, an app for service that was formally discontinued by Microsoft some time ago; expensive third-party apps for Google Maps, a free service; “Cute Fancy Themes for BBM”; Followgram, which is an Instagram viewer that can’t post pictures; and 4G Signal Booster Advanced, a paid app which almost certainly cannot accomplish what it claims. Only the biggest of the big names are here, and not even all of them.

The most popular free pastime in BlackBerria appears to be a derivative game called “Candy Blast.” The most popular paid game is “Candy World 2,” followed closely by “Revenge of the Pigs,” a crude clone of an otherwise unattainable cultural import. This matches the last and most fatal of the signs of a failed state: an inability to interact with other states as a full member of the international community.

★ Friday, 30 August 2013