A radio interview with RIM Europe’s Managing Director turned into a PR disaster this morning, after the simple question, “What have you learned from the iPhone” was repeatedly sidestepped – badly.

When you’re Research in Motion, and have effectively been squeezed out of the smartphone market by Apple and Google, the question of what the company has learned from its primary competitors is going to come up in interviews. It would be wise, then, to have an answer prepared; after all, a lot of potential customers are going to be comparing your new products against the iPhone and many Android phones after today, so a few hints at where BlackBerry 10 differs wouldn’t go amiss.

Sadly, in an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live, RIM Europe’s Managing Director, Stephen Bates either didn’t have an answer in his pocket or more worryingly, has accidentally admitted RIM has learned absolutely nothing from its competitors. Bates was being interviewed about BlackBerry 10, which launches later today, by well-known British radio host Nicky Campbell who posed the question, “What have you learned from Apple?”

Pretty straight forward question, right? Not for Bates, who stumbled for a second before replying, “So, BlackBerry 10 is a unique proposition…” After not receiving any form of answer, Campbell pushed again, asking, “Have you learned anything from the iPhone?” The response? “This market is a great market…” Blah, blah, press release copy, blah. The interview continues for another two-and-a-half minutes, where Bates continues to not answer the question, or indeed say anything about BlackBerry 10’s benefits, unique selling points or how it differentiates itself from the competition.

Embarrassing, and a missed opportunity

You can listen to the whole, embarrassing three minutes here, and it’s both highly amusing and terribly worrying at the same time. We’d be surprised if anyone listening and hearing about BlackBerry 10 for the first time will be inspired to seek out details later on, or try to find a new BlackBerry phone in the shops. The impression the interview gives is that BlackBerry is the same business focused, dreary option it has been for the last few years. Worse still, BlackBerry 10 sounded boring, and RIM clueless about what real people want from a smartphone.

No companies, especially ones in the midst of a make-or-break relaunch, can afford to ignore the competition – or at least, give the impression of doing so. Apple slings lawsuits at its enemies to undermine their products, Samsung makes TV adverts which poke fun at the iPhone and Apple’s clientele, and Google fills its competitors phones with its own, super-popular apps. We’d be surprised if RIM hadn’t been studying the iPhone, iOS, Android and the Galaxy S3 to see what makes them so popular; so why not admit it? It’s sales 101 – an opportunity to tell the world how much better and/or different BlackBerry 10 is from the rest.

Our experience with BlackBerry 10 has been good, and RIM is obviously working hard to make it a success, making careless interviews like this one doubly as frustrating to hear. Let’s hope Thorsten Heins does a better job of selling BlackBerry 10 during the global launch event later on today.

With the launch of a new mobile operating system and two new handsets just hours away, BlackBerry maker Research In Motion has flipped the switch on its new BlackBerry World store for BB10 users, bringing with it a range of new content including TV shows, movies and music.

Hours before Research In Motion (RIM) throws the spotlight on its new BlackBerry 10 platform, the company’s revamped BlackBerry World storefront has gone live, with new content such as TV shows, movies and music selling alongside the existing line-up of apps and games.

A quick look through its offerings reveals, hardly surprisingly, that pricing is comparable with similar services such as Google Play and Apple’s iTunes store.

The video download and rental options will initially be available to users in the US, UK and Canada, RIM said in a statement released earlier in the week. The company failed to say when the service will be rolled out to other regions.

Meanwhile, the music section is launching in 18 countries: the US, Canada, the UK, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, Australia, India, Malaysia, New Zealand and Singapore.

The Canadian mobile maker is promising video content from “all major studios”, adding that “most” movies will hit the store the same day as they come out on DVD, with TV shows arriving the day after broadcast.

“RIM is committed to working with content providers to bring the best, most up-to-date content to our customers with BlackBerry 10, and to make it easy for them to get what they want,” said Frank Boulben, RIM’s chief marketing officer.

The grand unveiling of the long-awaited BB10 mobile operating system, together with two new handsets, takes place today in New York at 10am ET, with other special events planned for cities around the world.

It’s been a diabolical few years for RIM, with today’s launch its best and probably final opportunity to reinvent itself. If it turns up with something exciting and can persuade enough consumers – and businesses – to give it another try, it has a fighting chance of getting its beleaguered business back on track and reestablishing itself as a serious player in the smartphone market. OK, Thorsten, show us what you’ve got….

Nokia has invited members of the press to an event at Mobile World Congress, where it’s possible the company will debut its first Windows RT tablet, along with at least one new entry into its range of Windows Phone 8 smartphones.

Nokia has announced it will be holding a press conference at Mobile World Congress late next month, and to prove it means business, it’s scheduled for 9am on February 25 – that’s about as early as they dare on the very first day of the mobile trade show. Nokia’s invitation is a bit strange though, as it shows a woman clutching a fork, with the words At Home in Barcelona printed in bold type next to it. We’re used to press invites giving nothing away, but this one is especially cryptic.

If there is anything to be read into the invitation, it’s the use of, “At Home,” a phrase which doesn’t scream smartphones, which would be better described by saying, “Out and About in Barcelona.” Instead, this could refer to a device we more commonly use at home – a tablet, for instance. If the rumors are to be believed, Nokia is busily working on a tablet running Microsoft’s Windows RT platform, and a Mobile World Congress launch has always been on the cards.

Tablet aside, Nokia has also been linked with a series on new Windows Phone 8 smartphones, including the Catwalk and the EOS, both codenames referring to the Lumia 920’s replacement and what has been described as a true PureView Windows Phone. However, as the Lumia 920 only went on sale in November last year, surely Nokia isn’t about to release its replacement? We’d say the Catwalk is a better candidate for Nokia World towards the end of the year.

The EOS is a better bet, as last year’s Mobile World Congress played host to the 808 PureView. While the Lumia 920’s camera is excellent, we’ve yet to see a true follow-up to the 808 PureView, and as Symbian has finally been laid to rest, this seems like a good opportunity.

As Mobile World Congress takes place in Barcelona, Spain, the 9am start time converts over to 3am Eastern Time for those in the USA. Don’t worry though, we’ll be at the show to bring you all the news if you don’t want to wait up.