* The Verge gives at a long look at Research in Motion’s rise and decline: how it was built and how former co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie lost their way. Also, the company’s ailing BlackBerry PlayBook tablet received a software update that finally brought native apps to access email, calendar, address book and BlackBerry Messenger functions. (The Verge and CNNMoney)

* Dell’s fiscal fourth quarter earnings came in below analyst predictions: an 18% drop in net income to $764 million on revenues of $16 billion. (The New York Times)

* Comcast (CMCSA) is working on a new subscription video-on-demand competitor, named “Streampix,”  intended to go up against Netflix (NFLX). But the streaming service will only be available to those who also subscribe to Comcast cable. (Variety)

* Netflix inked a deal with The Weinstein Company. Translation: film titles like The Artist, Sarah’s Key, and The Intouchables, are coming to Netflix Instant. (Techcrunch)

* Tech entrepreneurs are getting younger and younger. Venture capitalists like Andreessen Horowitz now say they’re funding startups with 18 or 19-year-old founders. (Reuters)

* According to the analytics firm Distimo, many app makers are apparently making more money from their apps in Amazon’s Appstore than they are via Google’s Android Market. (GigaOm)

* Is Amazon’s rewards program, Amazon Prime, profitable? Probably not. But it is a vital part of the company’s long-term strategy. (Fortune)

* As reported yesterday, Barnes & Noble (BKS) released a $199 version of its recently introduced Nook Tablet with 8 gigabytes of storage, arguably to better combat Amazon’s Kindle Fire. (Barnes and Noble)

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