Cisco Responds To Router Firmware Backlash….. They Fail To Make Friends And Influence People

I’ll admit right off the top that I’ve been a bit late to post this. But I figured better late than never…..

Frequent readers of my blog will recall that Cisco auto downloaded a firmware update that took come control of a user’s router away from the user and moved it to the Cisco cloud. On top of that, there were some really nasty terms of service that allowed Cisco to go after you if you used the router to surf for porn and download illegal material. To nobody’s surprise, users were pretty ticked off. Well, Cisco responded to this via their blog:

Cisco prides itself on offering the best customer experiences, and privacy and security are at the core of everything we do.  That goes for Cisco Connect Cloud too. When a customer signs up for a Cisco Connect Cloud account, personal information is used only to establish an account in order to provide customer support.  Consistent with Cisco’s practices, Cisco Connect Cloud does not actively track, collect or store personal info or usage data for any other purposes, nor is it transmitted to third parties.

We also wanted to clear up any confusion about Cisco’s ‘opt in’ practices. Cisco Connect Cloud was delivered only to consumers who opted in to automatic updates. However, we apologize that the opt-out process for Cisco Connect Cloud and automatic updates was not more clear in this product release, and we are developing an updated version that will improve this process.

Now that sounds almost apologetic. But I’m guessing that this didn’t go over well. I base that statement on the this. Go to the blog post and scroll down to the bottom. You’ll notice this:

Cisco added a link to a second entry which provides far more clarity than the original blog entry. One wonders why they didn’t just do that in the first place? The second thing that you’ll notice is that comments are closed for this blog entry. That seems inconsistent with this statement on the original entry:

We apologize to any of our customers who were inconvenienced. We take feedback very seriously.  It is our mission to provide the highest quality offerings where customer satisfaction is always paramount.

Sure you do. That’s why comments are closed on the blog entry. Right?

Sorry Cisco, this is a #fail.

Hey IT Nerd! How Would You Fix RIM?

Now this is an interesting question that I got in my inbox today. How would I fix RIM. Seeing as they are on life support at the moment, I’m not 100% sure they can be fixed. But lets assume for a second that it is possible to fix RIM. Here’s what I would do to fix it:

1. The board has to go: RIM would not have gotten this bad if the board who oversaw ex-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis actually did their jobs as opposed to look the other way. There’s no reason to believe that this won’t continue seeing as largely the same board is still in place. Thus it needs to be swept away and complete outsiders need to come in and take over.
2. A CEO from the outside needs to be hired: Thorsten Heins hasn’t been CEO all that long, but he has been with RIM since 2007 according to RIM.com. He spent the first few months of his tenure as CEO basically saying that there was nothing wrong. Now he’s laying off 5000 people and the company has lost $518 million. But according to him, it’s not as bad as it looks although he’s not happy with the performance of RIM. Sorry, he’s as much a part of the problem with RIM as the board is. Thus the solution is similar. A complete outsider needs to come in and run the company.
3. Blackberry 10 must ship early in 2013: By early in 2013, I mean January 1, 2013. This new platform which is the only thing that will save RIM is going to be late to market having been delayed at least twice. By then, there will likely be a new iPhone and a new version of Android on the streets and in the hands of consumers. It cannot afford a third delay under any circumstances if they want to get back into the game.
4. Blackberry 10 must be outstanding: It will not be good for RIM if Blackberry 10 gets a bunch of ho hum reviews. Blackberry 10 has to hit the ground bug free, and it has to be something that shifts the smartphone market back to RIM. Anything less, and they’re screwed.
5. RIM needs a plan “b”: What happens if Blackberry 10 arrives dead on arrival? What’s their plan “b”? I have no idea. RIM needs one and they need one now.

Agree? Disagree? Did I miss anything? Post a comment and share your thoughts.