[lcjr]

Interesting turn of events regarding the DoD, DISA, and the Cloud. Good reading if you have interest.

New DoD cloud policy delayed to early December | C4ISR & Networks | c4isrnet.com

http://www.c4isrnet.com/article/2014...mobile-devices

[sailpgd]

Hey Ben,

Tough one there, they are right in the heart of a bear market in energy and their last Q report was a tough one to handle. They are willing to sell some assets, against plenty of debt, a really nice company that should be acquired to right size that balance sheet. My golden rule is little or zero debt and plenty of cash and they missed on both I'm afraid. You didn't say whether you owned it so I'll stop talking before I go too far. GL

If you like no debt and solid cash reserves then what are your thoughts on Petroamerica? They actually have a negative net debt to ebitda ratio and their cash exceeds their total debt. Their next few wells are being drilled in the proven Quinde and Cohembi oil fields.

I actually prefer natural gas weighted stocks over the next several months but I may take a position in PTA once things settle down. Regardless, I would be interested in your thoughts. Many thanks.

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[masterful]

Stay away from oil

#BBFactCheck

[Corbu]

For SF and those of you who understand French, an interview with David Derrida, Product Manager BlackBerry Europe on recents developments at BBRY:

[sidhuk]

http://m.theglobeandmail.com/report-...service=mobile



BlackBerry has a 23% market share in SA (from 18% last year) and a survey showed 29% planned to buy a BlackBerry next year. Also notable was the result that 57% of university/college students owned a BlackBerry.

Continent-wide, BlackBerry has 18% marketshare. In the future, pricing will be key as low-cost Chinese Android phones enter the market.

Details: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repor...ticle15621532/

Posted using BlackBerry passport.

[Corbu]

It would appear an agreement has been concluded between BBRY and the German government regarding the Secusmart acquisition:
Medien: Bundesregierung schlie�t Anti-Spionage-Vertrag mit Blackberry

Warning - This is my own best effort at translating and edting that original article, with the help of the usual tools. Hence, please use and interpret with caution. If someone out there speaks fluent German, a better quality translation would be appreciated. Thanks!

Federal Government concludes anti-spy agreement with BlackBerry

HAMBURG (dpa-AFX) - According to media reports, the Federal Government has signed an anti-espionage agreement with BlackBerry. According to information from NDR, WDR and the S�ddeutscher Zeitung, the agreement concluded by the Federal Government concedes control rights to the company. BlackBerry announced the takeover of the German encryption company Secusmart last summer. Secusmart supplies the Federal Government with secure phones. The "Merkel phone" is used by the Chancellor, Ministers and senior officials.

The Ministry had initially stopped the sale of the German firm Secusmart and examined how a takeover by BlackBerry could endanger essential security interests of the Federal Republic of Germany, the three media reported on Thursday. As a result of the now-completed examination, the Ministry of Economic Affairs has agreed to the sale subject to certain conditions. BlackBerry will allow the Federal Office for Information Security (FSI) to inspect and check the source code of the BlackBerry operating system.

Also, BlackBerry has committed to report security vulnerabilities in operating systems to the Federal Government as soon as they become known. The group has also added the so-called "no-spy clause", which holds that the Federal Government will not legally be obliged to disclose confidential information to foreign intelligence services. The production and development of Secusmart should continue to take place in Germany.

Neither Secusmart nor BlackBerry wanted to comment on the process according to the report. The Ministry of the Interior have the information but confirmed.

[georg4BB]

Corbu, I checked the German source. The translation is correct so far.

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[Superfly_FR]

For SF and those of you who understand French, an interview with David Derrida, Product Manager BlackBerry Europe on recents developments at BBRY:

- BlackBerry won't stop Smarphone - New range of devices
- Clean financial balance and assure the long live
- BB capitalize on their strenghts . Custommers market dilluted BB image. Want to focus back on productivity and security.
(new devices, passport, classic, nothing you don't know)
- Enterprise solutions, BES12, heterogeneity and do on.
- No compromise on security : born in banks and govs, never hacked, best certification, continuating investments (Secusmart voice+data, used by German gov)
- "Scandals" : we don't surf on others' desmise despite they may have do it for us. Those who had problems with leaks and security know where we are.
- Software Services : we want growth (CEx are from Enterprise (SAP) and S&S oriented) new offerings ; ID Management, Communication (BB VPN, BBM ...)
- Alliances mandatoy for success/ new market shares (Samsung) ? : "There a a lot of partnerships that are vaporware. Most partnerships between Apple and IBM failed these last 10 years. Partneriship with Samsung is an answer to our Enterprise clients request; we want to manage Samsung devices (BYOD situation).
- BYOD : BES12 is flexible and meets every deployment scenario (COBO, COPE,BYOD) on heterogeneous platforms.

Quick & dirty, but, I guess you can fell the blow in the the bolded sentence ... that's what you want for brunch, isn't it ?

Cheers, busy day, have a nice one gang !

[W Hoa]

It would appear an agreement has been concluded between BBRY and the German government regarding the Secusmart acquisition:

Warning - This is my own best effort at translating and edting that original article, with the help of the usual tools. Hence, please use and interpret with caution. If someone out there speaks fluent German, a better quality translation would be appreciated. Thanks!

English article here:

Germany backs Blackberry's purchase of Secusmart

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/german...100527310.html

[W Hoa]

BlackBerry Ltd. (BBRY.US) is in talks with the Hong Kong government to upgrade its mobile communications platform, according to a senior executive.

BlackBerry in talks with HK govt on platform upgrade

[W Hoa]

After months of low volume sales of BlackBerry's in India it appears things may be moving up:



https://www.zauba.com/importanalysis...le-report.html

[Corbu]

And from Deutsche Welle, confirmation:
Merkel bets on Blackberry to beat cyperspies | Business | DW.DE | 28.11.2014

Berlin has signed an anti-spying deal with BlackBerry, allowing the Canadian phone make to take over Germany's Secusmart. The encryption software maker outfits government phones, including that of Chancellor Merkel.

The German Economics Ministry said Friday it had approved of the takeover of German software firm Secusmart by Canadian mobile phone maker BlackBerry.

In a statement the ministry said it had "thoroughly scrutinized" the transaction to see if it violated "essential security concerns."

The German government uses about 2,500 BlackBerry devices outfitted with Secusmart encryption software. The handsets incorporate a Secusmart microSD that acts as a separate hard drive for confidential information which can't be accessed by hackers.

No-spy deal

According to German media reports, BlackBerry had accepted far-reaching control powers for the German government in exchange for the Secusmart takeover to go ahead.

BlackBerry reportedly agreed to give Germany's cyper security agency BSI full insight into the source code of BlackBerry's operating system and immediately report security problems to BSI. In addition, the deal included a binding obligation for BlackBerry not to pass on confidential information to foreign intelligence agencies, the German media said.

The German Economics Ministry didn't confirm details of the deal, saying only that a contract had been signed to protect essential "security interests."

In 2013, Germany was scandalized by revelations from the Snowden files that Chancellor Angela Merkel's cell phone had allegedly been tapped by United States' intelligence agency NSA. The takeover of Secusmart by BlackBerry raised concerns among German lawmakers as Canadian officials are known to be working closely together with US-based spy agencies.

[morganplus8]

If you like no debt and solid cash reserves then what are your thoughts on Petroamerica? They actually have a negative net debt to ebitda ratio and their cash exceeds their total debt. Their next few wells are being drilled in the proven Quinde and Cohembi oil fields.

I actually prefer natural gas weighted stocks over the next several months but I may take a position in PTA once things settle down. Regardless, I would be interested in your thoughts. Many thanks.

Posted via CB10

Quick OT ALERT !!!

Hi sailpgd !!!

This is call option on energy, nice little company, don't like doing business in Columbia (their sports wear is good though !) and it has a nice balance sheet. Because it is a micro ( $ 165 MM in Cap size) I can't invest in it as I would take over the market buying shares. If you wanted to bet on the price of oil and limit your losses to the entire investment, it looks like a fun play. Columbia reminds me of BBRY and Venezuela and that's a sore topic on this thread. GL

[Superfly_FR]

Corbu ... you're a gold mine. Thanks !

[sidhuk]

Corbu ... you're a gold mine. Thanks !

Naw. Diamonds and platinum IMO

Posted using BlackBerry passport.

[Corbu]

Corbu ... you're a gold mine. Thanks !

Thank you SF! Nothing here would have happened without you. So, credit where credit is due!

[Corbu]

Naw. Diamonds and platinum IMO

[Corbu]

And now, from the WSJ...
BlackBerry Buyout of Secusmart Gets German Go-Ahead - WSJ

Berlin Says It Has No Security Concerns About Takeover

BERLIN—The German government has approved the sale of encrypted phone-maker Secusmart GmbH to Canada’s BlackBerry Ltd. , saying it has no national security concerns.

The deal has been weighed down by ongoing trans-Atlantic tensions relating to spying, after revelations in the summer of 2013 that the U.S. government had tapped German chancellor Angela Merkel ’s phone.

While BlackBerry is a Canadian company, the Canadian government has an intelligence agreement with the U.S. that raised concerns in Germany.

The D�sseldorf-based Secusmart sells encrypted landline and mobile phones to the German government for use at home and abroad. After Secusmart ran into financial trouble, BlackBerry showed interest in an acquisition, and the two companies agreed on a deal back in July.

After the deal was announced, several German government ministries said they would evaluate the terms in light of national security and competition concerns. On Friday, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry in Berlin said that a service contract between the German government and BlackBerry takes into account German security interests.

A person familiar with the matter said BlackBerry was forced to reveal its source code to the Federal Office for Information Security, the government authority responsible for government computer security in Germany.

The Canadian phone maker and software company also issued a public pledge not to spy on German soil, a “no-spy” agreement that has become common for German government contracts.

A BlackBerry executive said the deal was never in trouble and the investigation was a normal part of doing business with the German government.

[CDM76]

And now, from the WSJ...
BlackBerry Buyout of Secusmart Gets German Go-Ahead - WSJ

They gave up their source code??? Umm. That doesn't seem right....

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[sidhuk]

They gave up their source code??? Umm. That doesn't seem right....

Posted via CB10

Don't think you know how it works?

Posted using BlackBerry passport.

[W Hoa]

Quick OT ALERT !!!

This is call option on energy, nice little company, don't like doing business in Columbia (their sports wear is good though !) ...

Surely this sports wear comment can't be in reference to the Colombian Women's Cycling Team?

[Corbu]

Can BlackBerry revive its fortunes in enterprise mobility management? | SiliconANGLE

[bbjdog]

Reading Material

BlackBerry quietly launches enterprise service BES12 on Windows Phone

[bspence87]

Just realized...

Passport launched two days before last ER
Classic launching two days before next ER.

Maybe we have a pattern forming? What's the significance of two days?

Posted via CB10

[dusdal]

Just realized...

Passport launched two days before last ER
Classic launching two days before next ER.

Maybe we have a pattern forming? What's the significance of two days?

Posted via CB10

All the R & D and initial inventory cost is front end loaded?

Posted via CB10