Speed Dialing with no signal at all

U2's new tour, the U2360 Tour, has been announced....and they're starting in Europe. Check out the cool 360 concert and album preview. And be sure to look at that uncool logo down there on the bottom left, right under the "presented by". Wha? Bono Has A Blackberry? Even Slate is perplexed, on the RIM/Blackberry side of things.

Didn't U2 endorse Apple/iPod/iTunes/iPhone? Isn't that Bono's mug on the icon? Will it remain in Version 3?
I feel for Steve Jobs....first the TIME cover with Bill Gates, and now this. It's almost like the Bono is sticking it to him while he's down.

What most people (including the Slate reporter) don't realize is that, and I quote myself from the @U2 Forum here:

"Bono (rest of U2?) are invested in Elevation Partners, a company that has pumped a lot of money (hundreds of millions?) into Palm, a direct competitor of RIM/Blackberry and iPhone. So yeah, it is a lot different than some random company, it's the direct competition of two other products they are affiliated with... odd huh?

I think U2 love electronic gadgets so much... maybe they're doing all this just to get the latest technology. Geeks. Me, too. I like Palm."

This discussion led to funny statements like this gem from Mr. Bonorfied:

"I bet you like Palm I guess U2 figure they've got the market covered because if you're not getting RIM'med you're getting Palm'ed."

Then andyt nailed the name for the new Blackberry-sponsored U2 Tour:

"Perhaps the '360 DEGREE RIM TOUR'"

That's got a great ring to it. Thanks folks, I'll be here all week, but seriously...
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Palm's got a new smartphone coming out this summer, the Pre, and it's supposed to be the shimmy shing shing. Why didn't U2 use their considerable leverage to work with Palm? I find it odd...

So, U2 had a "business arrangement" with Apple: "sell our Tunes and we'll do your commercial".

Later, Bono/U2 invest in Elevation Partners (named for the U2 song), who start backing Palm through debt for years to get the company to its savior, the Pre.

Just as the Pre is about to be released, U2 announce their tour is being presented by... a 3rd smartphone company, RIM/Blackberry. I still can't wrap my head around it.

As a U2 fan, I don't like seeing them tied to products. As a Palm fan, this is a slap to the face! All that to say, I hope they find a way to do something cool with all the technology. Geeks!