commentary Dear Research In Motion, A mock-up of the rumored BlackBerry Colt. N4BB I know I’ve taken a few shots at you for not moving quickly enough to keep pace with your competitors. But there are some sacred cows you shouldn’t sacrifice in the name of progress. It would be a mistake to go away …

The iconic BlackBerry Bold look may be going the way of the dinosaurs once Research In Motion introduces its line of next-generation smartphones. Is the Bold’s iconic look going away with BBX? Research In Motion BlackBerrys running on RIM’s next-generation platform, dubbed BBX, will use the same screen aspect ratio as the PlayBook tablet, RIM said yesterday in PC Magazine. …

It’s shaping up to be a rough holiday for T-Mobile USA. The carrier, a unit of Germany’s Deutsche Telekom, earlier today reported a slight improvement in its results for the third quarter. That modest uptick was largely due to its uber-aggressive pricing promotions on the prepaid end, as well as an improving lineup of smartphones. That’s the good news. The …

Is there anywhere Angry Birds won’t go? Research firm Ovum doesn’t think so, and expects hits such as Angry Birds to drive growth in the digital gaming market. The firm predicts that the market, which comprises any online games played on the PC, console, or smartphone, will double over the next five years to $53 billion. The market for mobile …

The discounts keep coming for the BlackBerry PlayBook. The latest comes from a leaked Staples ad found by TechCrunch. The office-supply retailer appears to be offering the 16GB PlayBook for $199 as part of its Black Friday special. A full listing of Staples’ Black Friday specials can be found here. This marks the steepest price cut yet for the PlayBook, …

China Telecom wants to go where Walt Disney and ESPN couldn’t: the U.S. wireless business. The Chinese telecommunications provider wants to break into the U.S. market with its own service next year, the company told Bloomberg BusinessWeek. The company intends to go after Chinese Americans and tourists with its offer, which would provide one line for use in the U.S, …

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder told lawmakers today that the Justice Department’s antitrust division is “ready and eager” to pursue its lawsuit and stop AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile USA. Holder said the division is “committed to seeing this through,” Reuters reported today. Holder was speaking at an oversight meeting with the Judiciary Committee’s antitrust panel. In August, the Justice Department …

Hewlett-Packard maybe ready to unveil the fate of its troubled mobile operating system, WebOS. The company is planning an all-hands meeting tonight, led by newly installed CEO Meg Whitman, the Verge reported today. The company will likely share its plans for WebOS. HP planned to unload its WebOS mobile platform business as part of a wider shift away from the …

The merger between AT&T and T-Mobile USA would create more than 100,000 jobs in the United States, a major telecommunications union said today, again putting its weight behind the deal. The Communications Workers of America said a new analysis has found that the deal, which would combine the second- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers, would create an additional 96,000 jobs, …

American Express plans to dabble in mobile payments and other forms of digital commerce at an arm’s length, preferring to throw cash at startups rather than launch its own major initiatives. The company said today that it will invest $100 million in startups that are designed to address mobile and online payments, security, reward and loyalty programs, and other forms …