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BlackBerry Board Refused to Break Up Company Despite Interest From Apple, Others
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I don't see them touching Android. They have too much pride, and that would be admitting defeat.
If they buy the whole thing they might have to pay 6 or 7 billion... If they break it up into 5 parts say then the a part apple picks up so they will pay just 2 billion... They don't want the rest, because they don't think its worth the additional 4 or 5 billion... But other companies so want those parts... Say each part goes for 2 billion... So the parts are worth more than the whole and each company pays just for what they want...
I like BB10, and the hardware too.
But he said "successful", not "good". By no means have they succeeded, though I hope they do.
Corporate email and one finger navigation was BlackBerry's strength before the iPhone came out in 2007. For years after the iPhone was launched BB remained the top dog until the iPhone became an iconic symbol of coolness and the preferred device of the youth and eventually was joined by android in a battle to the death to become the preferred platform of corporate mobile communication. Why would I buy an android powered BB when I have hundreds of options from tens of phone manufacturers? BB is dead and whoever gave them the one billion dollar bandaid is going to be disappointed.
Enterprise secure e-mail is the main thing. Actually, it is still ahead of most solutions for Android and iOS right now, though that is changing. I could see Apple or Google being interested in BlackBerry's IP in order to build that functionality into the core OS.
I'm writing this on my BlackBerry Z10 - I recently switched from my iPhone 3G and I'm glad I did. I spent 292 euros plus 60 for a 64GB SD card, total about 350 for a phone with 80 GB, a great NEW (and not refreshed 6 year old) OS with some cool features (like timeshift) and a screen at the right size for my tastes (4,2 inch). My other option was an iPhone 5s costing 978.99 euros for the 64 GB model...
And at the same time I'm now having that same feeling like when I bought my first iMac back in 2000 - of not being mainstream...
I think BlackBerry's major problem is poor advertising...
And at the same time I'm now having that same feeling like when I bought my first iMac back in 2000 - of not being mainstream...
I think BlackBerry's major problem is poor advertising...
No,Android goes against the core principles of BB. Also note the the QNX based BB10 OS is way more powerful and capable than Android or iOS just not supported enough yet. I think the future is gonna change this real soon. QNX is probably one of the things Apple was after amongst the security secrets from BB.
I'm a fan of of BB, bought a now dead iPhone 5s ... considered buying a Z10 to play with.
I think major sticking point is lack of applications. Certain apps I use on a day to day basis that can't be used on bb10. I'm tied to the ecosystem.
Back in the day, when you only did email, IM and light web browsing, easier to switch phones.
Its the same problem Windows has. if BB wants to survive, they need to get out of the hardware business. No winning that game any longer.
You're absolutely correct no high security entity allows Android or iOS at this time. BB10 just got some kind of high security certification just recently which the others can't.
I disagree. I think the issue here is that Blackberry's value is sinking so fast, no one wants to make that move and get caught holding the bag when the bottom drops out.
Anyone who buys Blackberry in full is sooner or later going to shutter it. It's the end game. The value falls out immediately. But if people are just picking at its dying carcass, then they don't take on that risk.
Bottom line: why buy all of Blackberry today at $x.00 when a year from now you can buy all of Blackberry for at least $x.00/2 or less? You don't buy a company that has no future. The parts are definitely worth more than the whole in Blackberry's case. The board screwed up, and their shareholders will pay for it in time.
Interesting thought... BB Playbook added the ability to run android apps and the android market, and that didnt help.... but on a phone front, I wonder if some hybrid product might not have been a better move for them. Considering they don't have developers making content for their devices, (even netflix bailed), and were doing crude android ports as work arounds....
Though, BB's only saving grace has been it's security (corporate america still embraces that part of the bb platform), and Android has the most security issues of any mobile platform out there. Lots of companies still don't even allow android phones but will allow IOS, BB, and Win...
But at the end of the day, BB was alway a sell for features and not hardware except for their keyboards, which are so not the norm these days. If they can't put out a compelling device, the OS doesn't matter much anyway.
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They did say all of that.... they actually did. Steve Job even made some references to those comments in the demise of bb market share. Those comments were shortly after the iPad launch when Playbook was still in development. And we know how well that worked for them. This was also when they still had to ceos with their heads up one anothers arses, and their blind sight is probably what killed bb. They got rid of those guys waaaaaay too late.
Actually Blackberry still believed this in 2012.
Be Bold: Tools not toys
http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/02/rim-launches-blackberry-be-bold-ad-campaign/
If you mean wait for the bankruptcy, that won't necessarily be a fire sale. The company is put under court supervision with the objective of making creditors whole by liquidating assists at the highest possible prices. If someone is really interested in the assets of an unprofitable company, they are generally better off making the deal outside of bankruptcy, as the offer would not require court approvals and would likely be less expensive.
They took Apple seriously. The founder tells about getting the first iPhone and dismantling it to check out the circuits. He said he was just shocked at the amount of circuitry apple crammed in there. It was ten times more sophisticated than what was running BBRYs.
Until very recently BBRY still sold about the same number of handsets each year as it did when it was king. It is just the market that became huge.
Oh and I've got a Q10 and it is a very nice phone. Great sound quality. Rock solid OS, very fast and the peek and flow user interface is great for checking emails.
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"Tools not toys" was their marketing catch phrase for at least a year.
Play book was announced with an add saying "Amateur hour is over."
These were digs at Apple.
Sue other companies for patent violations.... you mean like Microsoft and Apple planned to do if they had succeeded in breaking up BB and buying the patents?
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In time? They've already paid for it. The stock was worth $69/share as recently as 2011. It's less than 10% of that now.
The shareholders, whoever they are now, are betting that $6.50/share is a bargain while holding out for an offer on the IP from whoever eventually buys it. They might make money on the stock. They might not. If I knew for sure, I'd be a millionaire and not be wasting my 3 minutes reading this forum. And you would be too.
