RIM replies to the Steve Jobs rant

Apple boss Steve Jobs went off on one yesterday after the company announced yet more record profit figures.

He basically tore into all the opposition saying they didn't stand a chance against the might of Apple.

RIM's Blackberry was in his line of fire. He said iPhone sales have now overtaken Blackberry and RIM would "not recover in the foreseeable future".

Jobs also dismissed manufacturers - like RIM - who're planning smaller 7"-screen rivals to the 10" iPad as "dead on arrival" because the screens are too small. In fact, he said rival companies should issue sandpaper with their devices so users could sand their fingers down to be able to use the screens.

RIM's co-CEO Jim Balsillie has now issued a statement in reply.  I've copied and pasted it in full...because it's good:

“For those of us who live outside of Apple’s distortion field, we know that 7″ tablets will actually be a big portion of the market and we know that Adobe Flash support actually matters to customers who want a real web experience. We also know that while Apple’s attempt to control the ecosystem and maintain a closed platform may be good for Apple, developers want more options and customers want to fully access the overwhelming majority of web sites that use Flash. We think many customers are getting tired of being told what to think by Apple. And by the way, RIM has achieved record shipments for five consecutive quarters and recently shared guidance of 13.8 – 14.4 million BlackBerry smartphones for the current quarter. Apple’s preference to compare its September-ending quarter with RIM’s August-ending quarter doesn’t tell the whole story because it doesn’t take into account that industry demand in September is typically stronger than summer months, nor does it explain why Apple only shipped 8.4 million devices in its prior quarter and whether Apple’s Q4 results were padded by unfulfilled Q3 customer demand and channel orders. As usual, whether the subject is antennas, Flash or shipments, there is more to the story and sooner or later, even people inside the distortion field will begin to resent being told half a story.”