RIM should buy webOS from HP

Working in the webOS business unit at HP must be one of the most depressing places to work, given the uncertainty over the future of the platform. Rumors are appearing that the company has called an all-hands meeting today to explain to the troops what the company will be doing with webOS and the business group.

That could involve shutting the platform down completely, or selling it off. Oracle is likely the buyer according to Reuters, but that wouldn't do much for the employees. Oracle is not in the device business so most likely if it bought webOS from HP for a few hundred million dollars it would be for the IP portfolio. It would be a shame to see webOS disappear just so someone could have the patents behind it.

The company that should buy webOS from HP is none other than Research in Motion (RIM). The BlackBerry maker has been floundering of late, and its PlayBook tablet a dismal failure in the market. Then there's the confusion over the QNX, or BBX, operating system that will power BlackBerrys in the future. Why not just buy webOS from HP at a bargain basement price and have an instant OS, and a good one at that? Doesn't "BlackBerry Synergy" have a nice ring to it? Sure it does.