Worldwide rollout for Blackberry 10

Research In Motion plans to release its new BlackBerry 10 smartphone lineup on six continents in the first quarter, seeking to capitalize on the company’s lingering strength in overseas markets. RIM has already met with 30 carriers to show them the BB10 operating system and the response has been positive, Chief Marketing Officer Frank Boulben said Tuesday.

“We’ve been hearing things like, ‘Unique, revolutionary, really slick,’ ” said Boulben, who had just returned from a trip that included stops in Singapore, Mumbai and Johannesburg — some of the markets where the BlackBerry remains popular.

RIM is counting on overseas customers to offset shrinking demand in North America, where the BlackBerry has lost ground to Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android operating system. Even with analysts projecting a 45 percent decline in RIM’s sales this fiscal year, the company says its installed base of customers continues to grow. The BlackBerry now has 80 million subscribers, up from 78 million, Boulben said.

The challenge for Boulben is persuading carriers, software developers and U.S. customers to embrace BlackBerry 10, an operating system that was delayed at least twice. RIM is touting the software’s ability to run multiple programs at once, making it easier for business customers to be productive.