However, "[n]o developer on BlackBerry today should feel that they need to abandon their existing investments [in Java apps]," Saunders says. "There were companies making lots and lots and lots of money in 2010 delivering apps for Windows XP. And there's a great market today for Java BlackBerry apps.

"But the way forward doesn't include the BlackBerry JDE," he says.

Saunders also says RIM is now encouraging developers to embrace its new WebWorks HTML 5 development tools. And the company recently unveiled a new set of developer resources, including in-depth training videos, in the form of a new initiative called "."

Another interesting tidbit for BlackBerry developers: Though a compatibility issue with the new "Liquid Graphics" engine in the BlackBerry 7 OS has kept RIM from releasing BlackBerry Theme Studio tools for the latest BlackBerry OS, Saunders says these tools will become available mid-2012, he says. (RIM has an internal theme building tool, which is how the company built the custom "Porsche" theme used on the new, device, but the tool is not available to developers outside of RIM, according to Saunders.)

Until the BlackBerry 7 issue is resolved, it remains unclear whether or not BBX smartphones will ever get BlackBerry themes.