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Apple's BlackBerry-beating iPhone sales just 'reality distortion' says RIM CEO

RIM CEO Jim Balsillie used a speech at Web 2.0 to issue one of his company’s attacks on Apple, saying, “You don’t need an app for the Web’.

Some may recall Apple CEO Steve Jobs in 2007 who said the future for app development on the iPhone rested with the Web. He faced a hail of criticism, Apple changed tack and launched the App Store, and the rest is history.

Balsillie was bigging up the PlayBook, a device he says will be three or four times faster at browsing the Web.

In an attempt to answer the need to stimulate a strong community of them, he added,

“We believe that you can bring the mobile to the web,” he said. “You don’t need to go through some kind of software development kit. That’s the core part of our message. You can use your existing development environment.

“There’s still a role for apps, but can you use your existing content? Can you use your existing web assets? Do you need a set of proprietary tools to bring existing assets on to a device, or can you use known tools that you use for creating websites?”

One more thing: Apple CEO Steve Jobs this year observed iPhone sales have eclipsed BlackBerry sales, and said he doesn’t see RIM catching up too soon.

“We’ve now passed RIM, and I don’t see them catching up with us in the foreseeable future,” Jobs said. “They must move beyond their area of strength and comfort into the unfamiliar territory of trying to become a software platform company.”

Balsillie’s response was to say Apple had told only ‘half’ the story, accusing Jobs of manifesting a ‘reality distortion field‘.

And final thing: NFC technology for contactless payments will likely be supported in future RIM devices, meaning Apple, Google and RIM now appear to hold iWallet plans.

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