BlackBerry OS Days Numbered? Canadian Smartphone Maker Loses More Ground

BlackBerry is not in a good place. In a report released by analytics firm Strategy Analytics Wednesday, the Canadian smartphone maker's OS is now fifth in the global market share rankings. Tizen, Samsung's OS, has pushed past BackBerry to take fourth place.

It was also good news for Android and iOS. The report said both made slight increases over the previous year's figures while Firefox and Microsoft joined BlackBerry in noting small decreases in an ever-competitive market.

In the long run, this may not matter to BlackBerry. The company's Priv phone, the first Android device to come from the company, is set to start shipping the week of Nov. 9. If it's a success, BlackBerry may have found itself a new way forward that doesn't depend on maintaining an entirely separate platform just to stay in the hardware business.

With BlackBerry OS in the gutter, it's make-or-break time for the company. If Priv doesn't sell, CEO John Chen has hinted it could spell the demise of the BlackBerry smartphone.

The company's second quarter 2015 results were worse than expected. Losses excluding some items were 13 cents per share, while analysts were estimating the company would only lose around 9 cents per share. In the same earnings report, Chen revealed plans to release the Priv.

Chen also described the BlackBerry OS as the "primary source of losses" for BlackBerry. The system underwent a major revival in January 2013, with BlackBerry 10 being rewritten from the ground up. If this latest market share report is anything to go by, this could spell the end for BlackBerry OS.