TORONTO -- Research In Motion says it is discontinuing the lowest-priced model of its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet.

A spokeswoman for the company says the BlackBerry-maker has stopped production on the 16GB Wi-Fi PlayBook.

Remaining supplies at retailers and distributors will be the last quantity.

RIM said it continues to manufacture both the 32GB and 64GB models of the PlayBook.

The company has run into trouble trying to sell the device in a market dominated by Apple's iPad and numerous other tablets.

Earlier this year, RIM began selling its PlayBooks at a discount to boost interest.

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  • Market Share Eroding

    RIM experienced trouble competing in the U.S. smartphone market in early 2011 and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/03/rim-market-share_n_871129.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">dropped from second place to third</a>, as Google's Android and Apple's iPhone gathered steam. The company's shares decreased 40 per cent in value since February,<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/03/rim-market-share_n_871129.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink"> Reuters reported in June</a>.

  • Cutting Jobs

    When facing leaner times in July, the struggling tech company <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/07/25/rim-to-cut-2000-jobs_n_908392.html" target="_hplink">announced its plan to cut 11 per cent of its workforce</a>, or about 2,000 employees, in an attempt to scale back.

  • Network Outage

    To add insult to injury, millions of BlackBerry users around the world <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/12/blackberry-outage-rim_n_1006691.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">experienced network outages</a>, resulting in messaging and browsing delays in October 2011. Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/10/13/rim-blackberry-outage_n_1008424.html" target="_hplink">posted an apology to YouTube</a> promising improvements to the system.

  • PlayBook Sales

    Following disappointing PlayBook sales resulting in <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/12/02/rim-playbook-485-million-charge_n_1125380.html" target="_hplink">huge profit losses</a>, RIM <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/28/blackberry-playbook-best-buy_n_1116532.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">slashed its tablet prices down to $199</a>, which prompted a major pre-Christmas rush. However, customers became outraged when Best Buy, unable to keep up with demand, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/28/blackberry-playbook-best-buy_n_1116532.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">reportedly cancelled existing orders and removed the PlayBook from its website</a> when it ran out of stock. In early January, RIM <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/03/blackberry-playbook-price-rim_n_1181167.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">put its struggling PlayBook tablet on sale</a> again in the U.S. for $299.

  • Samsung Rumours

    Mere days before RIM named Thorsten Heins as its new CEO, Samsung <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/17/samsung-rim-buyout_n_1210958.html?ir=Canada" target="_hplink">denied rumours</a> that it planned to purchase RIM or license its operating system, causing RIM shares to dip.

  • Outside Help

    May was not a kind month to RIM. Soon after the<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/28/karima-bawa-research-in-motion_n_1550984.html" target="_hplink"> departure of the company's chief legal officer</a>, Karima Bawa, the company announced that it would hiring two financial firms to advise on the company's financial performance.

  • Looming Layoffs

    If the announcement of the necessary outside help wasn't bad enough, numerous reports surfaced regarding RIM's massive layoffs during the end of May. The cuts were estimated at laying off <a href="http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/layoffs+could+many+employees/6689699/story.html" target="_hplink">anywhere from 2000 - 6000 workers.</a>