Bad news for BlackBerry fans eagerly awaiting the release of the BlackBerry Bold 9900; the whispers that we have been hearing over the last couple of days have turned out to be true. Unfortunately, RIM is apparently encountering problems getting the BlackBerry Bold 9900 out the door, and we have now learned that it will not arrive until at least September. The plan now is for a global launch in September if everything lines up.

As to why the 9900 is delayed and why RIM just can’t seem to catch a break getting devices out the door quickly, it seems the rumor mill has been working overtime and has a variety of answers. Our sources seem to believe that the 9900 delay is a combination of issues and no one particular thing is a major reason for the delay. We have heard that the availability of parts is a factor, but again… not the entire issue.

A new rumor has also emerged today that is making the rounds suggests RIM might actually reverse its original decision; and that there might be one more major release of the non-QNX version of the OS prior to the release of what is now being called the platform unified version of the OS. We are not hearing version numbers like 7.5 for the first major release of OS 7 that features the QNX platform. Then again, some tell us that it is more likely for a 6.1 or 6.5, and then a move to 7. We will just have to see.

A couple of things that we do not know are if the delay of the 9900 will affect the release of other closely aligned units such as the 9930 or the Torch 2, for example. Does the delay now confirm for sure that the 9900 will ship with some version of BlackBerry OS that will be branded as version 7?

One thing we do know is that continued delays of new models when combined with the delay of the new OS is putting RIM farther behind the 8-ball, so to speak; and while BlackBerry remains the leader in the Canada market space the company continues to lose market share to the Android models and also iPhone. While not all corporate customers are leaving BlackBerry yet, many are starting to have a mix of other devices rather than being a total BlackBerry shop.