[CrackBerry News]

Today we had our first taste of a BlackBerry quarterly conference call under the leadership of John Chen. We like this guy. He didn�t come armed with a script of prepared remarks to read at us like most CEOs. Instead, he just talked, unscripted, about what�s happening in the business.*
Chen has only been on the job for 45 days, but it�s obvious he�s not just sitting around thinking about what needs to happen. He�s out there doing it. From redesigning the executive team to signing a company-changing deal with Foxconn, this CEO is a man of action and he may just be able to pull off what seems like an impossible task. He might actually bring BlackBerry back to consistent profitability. But � don�t count on it happening anytime until fiscal 2016, which for BlackBerry, begins in March 2015. Between now and then it is quite likely this company will continue to burn some cash and lose some more subscribers.
Let�s take a very quick look at the quarterly numbers so we can then move onto the more interesting stuff.

Full story from the Crackberry Blog...

[heymaggie]

Well guess what? Today BlackBerry did shut down its hardware business (sort of). Except they�re still going to sell hardware.

I was pleased to hear Chen actually say they were exclusively focused on the enterprise market when it comes to high end devices in the near term.

Shutting down the hardware business and getting out of the consumer smartphone market = 50% true.

[badiyee]

Well guess what? Today BlackBerry did shut down its hardware business (sort of). Except they’re still going to sell hardware.

I was pleased to hear Chen actually say they were exclusively focused on the enterprise market when it comes to high end devices in the near term.

Shutting down the hardware business and getting out of the consumer smartphone market = 50% true.

False assumption. They are replacing manufacturing partners.

In their line ups they are still making, even as production is slowed.

The newer product, codenamed Jakarta has been outsourced to Foxconn.

It was insinuated that if the partnership is better than expected Foxconn could be designing "more" (John Chen's words) for BlackBerry.

[heymaggie]

Blackberry is clearly moving away from making smartphones and investors clearly are glad to hear it. Chen also clearly indicated that they would not be pursuing the high-end consumer smartphone market. On other words, no Blackberry super-phone. The focus will be enterprise and developing markets.

[kbz1960]

Blackberry is clearly moving away from making smartphones and investors clearly are glad to hear it. Chen also clearly indicated that they would not be pursuing the high-end consumer smartphone market. On other words, no Blackberry super-phone. The focus will be enterprise and developing markets.

So enterprise will only be offered the jakarta from now on?

[ssbtech]

Blackberry is clearly moving away from making smartphones and investors clearly are glad to hear it.

In the same way Apple doesn't make smartphones. Foxconn or not, we'll still be able to buy BlackBerry phones, just the same way Apple fans can buy iPhones.

Production should have been outsourced years ago. Personally I don't care who is making the phone so long as I can buy a BlackBerry handset with BB10. I don't want an LG or Samsung handset with BB10.

[badiyee]

Blackberry is clearly moving away from making smartphones and investors clearly are glad to hear it. Chen also clearly indicated that they would not be pursuing the high-end consumer smartphone market. On other words, no Blackberry super-phone. The focus will be enterprise and developing markets.

are you somehow probably, by my guess misinterpreting "Blackberry is clearly moving away from making smartphones and investors clearly are glad to hear it" instead of....

"BlackBerry has now found a partner that can make devices far cheaper than previous partnerships, thereby cutting costs down and investors are glad to hear it". ?

I think it is more of the latter than your statement.

[heymaggie]

You think Blackberry gets out of this by saving money on smartphone manufacturing? That's not all that's going on here.