In order to add an exciting new event to the HTML5 Summit, one of the 12 events collocated with ITEXPO East 2012, taking place this week in Miami, FL, BlackBerry (News - Alert) will be sponsoring a 15 hour Hack-a-thon exploring the ins-and-outs of its new BlackBerry browser and provide participants the chance to win a free BlackBerry PlayBook.

Tomorrow from 9 a.m. to midnight, join BlackBerry developers in room A108 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The event will demonstrate how BlackBerry WebWorks takes HTML5 beyond the browser. Developers will be on site showing attendees the power and simplicity of the new BlackBerry browser and what it has to offer in today’s growing HTML5 industry.

Those interested can experience firsthand how to move designs from the Web to a smartphone or tablet, package an HTML6 app and test on a device simulator.

“With the PlayBook, RIM has made a rock solid device that has a great browser.  As they embrace HTML5, RIM is bringing its community together around the platform of the future,” said Carl Ford (News - Alert), co-founder of Cross Fire Media and one of the masterminds behind the HTML5 event.

TMCnet recently caught up with Patrick Mollins, Platform Evangelist at RIM to discuss what we can expect at the Hack-a-thon and why BlackBerry is still a contender in the mobile enterprise today despite the negativity that seems to surround the company as of late.

What can participants expect at the Hack-a-thon?

BlackBerry experts will be on-site to show developers how simple it is to port web content to a BlackBerry App using HTML5 tools. If you bring your app or web content and hack it to a BlackBerry app at the Hackathon, you get a free BlackBerry PlayBook.

Why is the PlayBook a strong contender in the tablet market?

The BlackBerry PlayBook has a foundation in great hardware and a great platform. The PlayBook allows developers to take advantage of its power to create gorgeous apps that users are responding to in an amazing way. Some of our top downloaded apps are PlayBook apps, and that’s in only eight months. The PlayBook supports HTML5 apps, and has a full WebKit browser that is not compromised in any way. This is not a phone browser ported to a tablet, this is a browser optimized for a tablet and that’s compelling.

How does the PlayBook take HTML5 beyond the browser?

We have spent a lot of time and focus on HTML5 and how we can offer web developers a way to take their apps beyond what is traditionally seen with a web app. Our WebWorks toolset helps developers enhance content and integrate it in such a way that there are web apps for our smartphones and PlayBook that people would swear are native apps.

We’re thrilled with the response from developers who have recognized the opportunity here and our taking advantage of it and seeing some very early success. Kathryn Lahrs, an independent developer created a list of successful apps for BlackBerry smartphones using HTML5 and WebWorks and has ported them to PlayBook, where she is seeing great download numbers. We like hearing stories like that and we’re hearing them more and more.

How does BlackBerry intend to add to the HTML5 Summit with the Hack-a-thon?

HTML5 is definitely maturing and growing as a standard and we have worked for years to build out our HTML5 environment, so there’s not a better time to make sure the web development community knows that we have a great toolset for them and to highlight the opportunities on the BlackBerry platform.

We are very focused on connecting with Developers, so this is just a great opportunity. We’re thrilled to be part of the show. HTML5 is one of the top priorities for RIM right now because it is the only environment that allows developers to build for our current crop of devices, as well as future devices. We’ve shown a lot of commitment to HTML5 by having it be our bridging environment and keeping a high level focus on delivering additional tools that take the content beyond what you see on other platforms.

We have also been working very closely with open source partners. We have our WebWorks framework available on GitHub and support frameworks from JQuery, Sencha, PhoneGap and more. HTML5 has so many possibilities for the open source community and we’re committed to being a part of that. I’m hoping this show will provide us some insight and feedback from developers on where their needs lie and how we can help them.

It’s not too late to be a part of the hack-a-thon and have the opportunity to take home a free BlackBerry Playbook. Register now!

Want to learn more about HTML5? Then be sure to attend HTML5 Summit, collocated with TMC’s ITEXPO East 2012 taking place Jan. 31-Feb. 3 2012, in Miami, FL. HTML5 has the potential to revolutionize user interfaces, challenge the status quo and change the future of both desktop and mobile web experiences. Join fellow web developers, designers, and architects, as well as technology leaders and business strategists who will gather in Miami to learn strategies and tactics to implement and execute HTML5. For more information on registering for the HTML5 Summit click here.

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Stefanie Mosca is a Managing Editor for TMCnet, with a particular focus in wireless technologies as well as mobile and IP communications. She holds a master's degree in journalism from Quinnipiac University and a bachelor's degree in communication from the University of New Haven. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page or follow her on Twitter (News - Alert) @stefaniemosca.

Edited by Jennifer Russell