
BlackBerry posts fourth-quarter profit; seeks to end revenue slide - pmcpinto
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/27/us-blackberry-results-idUSKBN0MN18G20150327
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djloche
I just watched a recent interview with the CEO. The interviewer asked why
doesn't BlackBerry get out of hardware. Chen responded that the reason is two
fold: 1. Their hardware is profitable and represents a significant chunk of
their revenue. If they weren't making money with it, he'd get out. 2. Their
devices allow them provide the end to end security solutions that their
government and enterprise customers need.

They seem like they're on the right track and will continue to post
profitable, cashflow positive quarterly results. I'm interested to see how
they monetize BBM. I'm interested to see how quickly they gain share in other
niches ( healthcare/insurance specifically).

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sxcurry
Isn't this known as a "death spiral". Try to cut expenses faster than revenue
is dropping, until there's nothing left. I don't see any good news here, and
don't imagine that BB will exist as an independent company by next year. They
do have some good technology and I'm sure it won't be hard to sell the assets.

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sz4kerto
They sold 1.6M smartphones. That means that most probably they will probably
cease to be a hardware company in 2016.

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bluedino
Who's using them? What market? I have not seen a Blackberry in years. I saw a
picture of a guy with that new square-ish one and that's about it.

~~~
Mordak
I switched from an iPhone to a Passport last fall, and have been very happy
with it overall. I am a consumer, so this is just for personal use. My reasons
for switching were:

1\. Real keyboard. I carried the iPhone for 3 years and never liked the soft
keyboard. Most of my usage is text entry (messaging and email), so being able
to do this quickly and accurately matters. I much prefer text entry on the
Passport, both because I find it easier and more accurate, and I don't give up
half the screen to the soft keyboard.

2\. Dev / unix tools. It might be a bit surprising, but the BB10 dev kit is
actually pretty good: Several API options; no barriers to getting started
(download and go); and you can access / expose / augment the unix userland
underneath. With a command line app, it feels like a real computer. The
keyboard makes this experience better.

Since switching, I have also been pleasantly surprised by the size and quality
of the screen - 1440x1440 is kind of awesome (more pixels than my laptop).
Blend has also been unexpectedly good.

Anyway, that's me and my reasons. I'm just a unix nerd in the consumer market.
I'm not into flashing ROMs or jailbreaking or anything like that, and I find
the BlackBerry keyboard lineup pretty compelling. YMMV.

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walterbell
I would buy a Passport if there was strong privacy/security/policy isolation
between Android apps and data on the phone. Something like what Cyanogen does,
by faking blank data (e.g. contacts) in response to apps which insist on
having permission to access contacts.

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Theodores
Blackberry seem to have the finances to sponsor Mercedes F1, that cannot be
cheap, however it probably points to their future with QNX in the automotive
world.

~~~
sospep
also noteworthy, is that this wasn't just a 'marketing deal' per se but an
"enterprise partnership"

The Mercedes F1 team runs its business on BB hardware and software.

"The Mercedes F1 Team uses more than 200 BlackBerrys including Blackberry
Z10s, Q10s, Z30s and Passports. It's these along with BlackBerry Enterprise
Sever 10 (BES10) which seem integral to the day-to-day running of the
business."

~~~
aswanson
They need to get iphones.

~~~
freehunter
An iPhone doesn't replace a Blackberry if you really need a Blackberry. You
also can't run a car (minus the entertainment system) off of iOS like you can
QNX.

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philippnagel
Is there any manufacturer left besides BB that builds qwerty-phones?

~~~
Someone
"smartphone qwerty keyboard 2015" gives me
[http://www.phonerated.com/android_phones_with_keyboard-
listb...](http://www.phonerated.com/android_phones_with_keyboard-listbycat)
"2015+ Android Smartphones With A Slide-out QWERTY Keyboard", which includes
the LG Optimus F3Q, so the answer to that question is _yes_.

~~~
STRML
The F3Q is incredibly mediocre, but it's the best we'll get for quite some
time.

The dearth of decent android QWERTY phones is enough to make me consider
switching to BB. I don't need my phone to do that much, but typing well is the
difference between a toy that plays games and runs Facebook, and a useful tool
that I can type emails on, ssh from, etc.

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dlevine
I'm curious to see how they do this. It doesn't appear that any of
Blackberry's recent models have been a hit with consumers or enterprise.

John Chen does seem like the most level-headed exec in Blackberry's revolving
door succession of CEOs, but with that said, I'm not sure what Blackberry can
do to make itself an attractive alternative to iPhone, Android, and Windows
Phone. It seems that Blackberry has essentially given up all of their market
share, and what they need to do now is to essentially build their platform
from scratch.

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shyn3
I really think they have found a really good, niche market, but they don't
recognize it. They seem, BBRY, to have it backwards. They seem to be chasing
enterprise, but enterprise, doesn't understand the value proposition of the
product. BBRY is not a handset only anymore, it's a software service which
allows you to manage your mobile devices with a single unified view on all
operating systems. Explain that to enterprise is near impossible.

What BBRY needs to do is focus on the consultants/contractors, get them to run
their own/hosted BES service, with work/personal separation. Let me have as
many numbers, with different work spaces and personal spaces.

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MichaelCrawford
"seeks to end revenue slide"

Aren't we all.

