Everybody can use having a friend around, especially during those days when nothing seems to be going right. Sometimes, for humans, having somebody to talk to can spell the difference between hanging on and jumping off the ledge.

In the consumer tech market, where everything moves faster and the stakes are sometimes much higher, having a cool and moneyed business partner can significantly enhance a tech company’s chances for success if not its very existence.

Take the case of electronics manufacturer Sharp. For a long time, the company had been one of the brightest among Japanese companies. Sharp’s emergence as a global electronics powerhouse paralleled the country’s transformation into the world’s second largest economy.

Lately, however, the company has been stumbling along, weighed down by vanishing profits and huge losses. With the situation the company finds itself in so bad, its very survival seems uncertain.

Apple Lifts Sharp

Fortunately for the Japanese electronics company, it has Apple on its side.

Previously, the Cupertino company, which has been waging a patent war with main components supplier Samsung, had enlisted Sharp to be one of the iPhone’s display suppliers.

Rumors say Apple may have recently sent some $2 billion over to the struggling electronics manufacturer to ensure that the supplier lived long enough to deliver the touchscreen displays for the new iPhone 5. Asymco Horace Dediu based his hypothesis on Apple’s revelation in October that it had spent $2.3 billion on “product tooling, manufacturing process equipment, and infrastructure.”

Last time we checked, Apple does not manufacture those cool smartphones, MP3 players, and tablets in-house.

Can’t Make Enough iPhones

Meanwhile, Foxconn Technology, the contract manufacturer of Apple’s iPhones, recently admitted it is falling short of meeting demand for the latest edition of the Cupertino-branded smartphone. Foxconn chairman Terry Gou was reported to have blamed the iPhone 5’s difficult design as the main reason for the manufacturer’s inability to produce enough of the smartphone.

Of course, we all know the huge demand for the iPhone 5. I guess, it might take a little while for some consumers to get their hands on the world’s most-wanted smartphone.

US OKs BlackBerry 10

Research In Motion announced it has secured clearance from the U.S. government for its soon to be launched BlackBerry 10 platform and devices.

The FIPS 140-2 certification allows government agencies to deploy BlackBerry 10 devices and its related enterprise management platform as soon as the new RIM smartphones are launched.

The world’s former number 1 smartphone vendor, RIM needs the BlackBerry 10 to be a market success in order to have a shot at regaining some of the market share it had lost and ensuring its continued existence.

That’s all for the meantime, folks. Join me again next time as we keep on watching IT.