July 27, 2011 8:01 AM | By Jason Buckland, MSN Tech & Gadgets
The history of Research In Motion

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The Canadian Press Images/Stephen C. Host (© One of the many buildings of the Waterloo campus of Research in Motion.)
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  • The Canadian Press Images/Stephen C. Host (© One of the many buildings of the Waterloo campus of Research in Motion.)
  • Inter@ctive Pager (© Photo courtesy: Research In Motion)
  • RIM co-Ceo Jim Balsillie. (© CP PHOTO/Jonathan Hayward)
  • The BlackBerry 850 (© Photo courtesy: Research In Motion)
  • Man uses BlackBerry Messenger (© Koen van Weel Photo)
  • The BlackBerry Storm (© AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)
  • Blackberry Bold smartphones are displayed during its launching ceremony in Seoul, South Korea, Dec. 16, 2008. (© THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Ahn Young-joon)
  • Mike Lazaridis, president and co-CEO of Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM), holds the new PlayBook during the annual BlackBerry developers conference, Sept. 27, 2010, in San Francisco. (© AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
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One of the many buildings of the Waterloo campus of Research in Motion.Show Thumbnails
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When: 1984

Though it would be more than a decade before the name reached any level of brand recognition, Research In Motion was actually founded by two engineering students way back in 1984. Current co-CEO Mike Lazaridis was on board from day one, but contrary to popular belief, his chief exec counterpart Jim Balsillie didn't join RIM until 1992, when he reportedly mortgaged his home to put $250,000 into the company. RIM began as an electronics and computer science consulting business, and within four years of its start-up would begin focusing on transmitting wireless data, a hallmark decision for the fledgling tech enterprise.

* Video: Steve Jobs fires shot at RIM

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