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BlackBerry shifting emphasis from smartphones to services

Thomson ReutersMay 21, 2013 14:02

By Euan Rocha TORONTO (Reuters) - BlackBerry no longer owns the fast-paced, innovative smartphone world but the company, whose email-on-your-hip devices once revolutionized the industry, now aims to run it. The change in focus was hard to miss at the company's well-attended annual conference in Florida last week, even as news of a new smartphone model and its plans to offer the popular BlackBerry Messaging (BBM) instant message service on other platforms grabbed the headlines.

Possible BlackBerry tablet steals the show at company's annual conference

The Canadian PressMay 16, 2013 11:17

ORLANDO, Fla. - BlackBerry executives delivered a lengthy list of new announcements this week at the smartphone maker's annual conference, but the buzz has already shifted to what the company may be still hiding up its sleeve, including the possibility of a small tablet device.

BlackBerry says giving away BBM for free will still make it money

The Canadian PressMay 16, 2013 01:48

ORLANDO, Fla. - BlackBerry (TSX:BB) says it will be able to make money off its BlackBerry Messenger service by opening it up to its rivals' smartphones. One of the Waterloo, Ont.-based company's top developers said Wednesday that while BBM will be available to users on Apple's iPhone and Android operating systems for free, there are other ways to generate revenue. "By opening it up to other platforms we're really listening to what our users have asked for," said Andrew Bocking, executive vice-president of software product management at BlackBerry.

BlackBerry focuses on cool factor as it returns to Orlando for annual event

The Canadian PressMay 13, 2013 05:00

ORLANDO, Fla. - BlackBerry will pull out all the stops this week as the company welcomes thousands of industry players for BlackBerry Live, its annual three-day conference which promises to offer some perspective into its future. Chief executive Thorsten Heins will take the stage on Tuesday and is expected to deliver a keynote speech that could reveal a lower-priced version of its latest phone and some clues about whether the company plans to abandon tablet technology forever.

BlackBerry Q10 sells strongly in Canada and Britain: analyst

Thomson ReutersMay 8, 2013 15:11

TORONTO (Reuters) - BlackBerry's new Q10 smartphone, which comes with the physical keyboard that many BlackBerry fans prize, is selling well in both Canada and Britain, an industry analyst said on Friday. The company this week introduced the Q10, the second smartphone to run the new BlackBerry 10 operating system, in Canada and Britain.

BlackBerry users hit by first service outage since BB10 launch this year

The Canadian PressMay 3, 2013 17:36

TORONTO - BlackBerry users have been hit with yet another a service outage. The company says its technical teams have addressed the problem and services are returning to normal levels. However, BlackBerry (TSX:BB) did not say how widespread the problem was or how many users were affected, and representatives for the company would not confirm any details. The outage was the first for the company since it launched its new BlackBerry 10 smartphones earlier this year.

U.S. Defence Department gives OK to BlackBerry 10 smartphones, company says

The Canadian PressMay 2, 2013 20:00

WATERLOO, Ont. - BlackBerry (TSX:BB) says the U.S. Department of Defence has approved its new BlackBerry 10 smartphones and PlayBook tablets for use on its networks. The smartphone maker says its devices have undergone successful testing in the Defence Department labs to win approval. BlackBerry launched its Z10 smartphone in the U.S. earlier this year. The Q10 version with the popular physical keyboard was made available this week in Canada. BlackBerry is expected to release the Q10 in the crucial U.S. market later this month, although a date hasn't been announced.

BlackBerry keyboard phone will land first in Toronto, rest of Canada to follow

The Canadian PressApril 30, 2013 13:00

TORONTO - BlackBerry users hoping to get their hands on the latest version of the keyboard smartphone will have to wait a couple more days — if they live outside of Toronto. The company (TSX:BB) says the release of the BlackBerry Q10 will begin first in the Greater Toronto Area on Wednesday, before it expands to the rest of Canada later in the week. "The demand in Toronto is very, very strong, and we want to make sure we have enough supply," chief operating officer Kristian Tear said in an interview.

BlackBerry says report of high return rate 'false'

Agence France-PresseApril 12, 2013 11:30

Smartphone maker BlackBerry on Friday slammed as "false and misleading" a brokerage research note which claimed consumers were returning the new Z10 handsets at a high rate. The Waterloo, Ontario, firm said it would ask US and Canadian stock market regulators to investigate the basis for the note which was issued this week by Detwiler Fenton. "Sales of the BlackBerry Z10 are meeting expectations and the data we have collected from our retail and carrier partners demonstrates that customers are satisfied with their devices," said BlackBerry chief executive Thorsten Heins.

BlackBerry posts surprise profit, but subscribers slip

Thomson ReutersMarch 28, 2013 07:45

By Euan Rocha TORONTO (Reuters) - BlackBerry reported a surprise quarterly profit on Thursday after shipping 1 million new Z10 smartphones, but the Canadian company still fell short of convincing markets that its turnaround plan is already a runaway success. BlackBerry shares were up 2.3 percent at midday on the Nasdaq, down from their 10 percent gain immediately after the results came out.