[sidhuk]

Sorry Sidhuk, I know how disappointed you are, but Coco likes to keep her private pictures private and not in the cloud.


Attachment 396086

Attachment 396087

But "my cocos" coming here to bad mouth blackberry alone. LoL

Posted Via blackberry passport.

[DREXcb]

Lots of good comments on the board this weekend. Here are some of my thoughts.
I start with the fundamental belief that Chen is not an *****. You don't get to his stature if you don't understand business basics.
With that in mind I look at the question of why he has not spent more on marketing. If you listen to him he has consistently said that the enterprise is his market and the consumer is not. In that case I would not expect him to spend any money on marketing to the consumer except possibly to let shareholders know BBRY is still alive. I am not in the circles of the senior executives of enterprises so I have no idea of what marketing is done to that market but I do know it is significantly different than mass marketing.
Chen realized that they had lost the consumer phone battle when he came on board but he also knew that that was the only image the market and the stock market understood so he needed to move it forward with all the diligence of a good businessman and try to get it so that it wasn't a drain while he created this other reality of what BBRY is. I noticed on this ER the media was finally focusing on the software view of the company. As that takes hold we will see him tweak the message to bring a more balanced image of the company. He needs hardware to survive but not overshadow the rest of the company.
I think we need to watch for the bundle in the next couple quarters. If the media stops thinking of BBRY as hardware and starts to see it as a secure solution provider that can deliver from hardware to networks to containerized apps we will start to get the real picture of the future.
On the topic of a lower end Priv...my first reaction is that that space is already crowded so why would he go there. Again starting with the belief that he isn't an ***** what am I missing. I then realized that if I look at a typical Org chart for an enterprise it is triangular in shape. The volume increases as you go down through the company. If I am targeting the enterprise with high end phones that will only fill the needs of the top of the triangle. If I want to bundle I need to solve my customer's needs for a phone for the next level down. I can't just say I have a bundle you should commit to but it has big holes. If I can fill the holes I can have focused conversations with the decision makers to convince them to buy.
To get to that conversation takes a different kind of marketing than most of us would ever even see.
When I first invested I had not given up on the consumer space so my expectations were wrong and not met but I really like how skillfully the company has been managed to create this new few of the future. I realize that it will be a longer slower rise in share price but it is a lot stronger base with huge potential.

My two cents worth.

Posted via CB10

[bbjdog]

If I had a nickel for every time that Chen indicated he was getting out of hardware . . . I'd have a quarter!

All we need is three more to make a loonie. Lol

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[bbjdog]

But "my cocos" coming here to bad mouth blackberry alone. LoL

Posted Via blackberry passport.

Yeah your cocos (only one true Coco) like shiny tin cans and take selfie pictures, also look in the mirror for hours. My Coco doesn't have a self esteem problem, she loves the way she is and doesn't care what others think. Special girl. LOL

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[Klipspringers Shoes]

I think JC knew that hardware was a losing proposition from day one. That's why he cancelled every single hardware project except for the Passport which was too far along. He made his first new smartphone a retread "Classic" and set his hardware chief on a mission to replace BB10 with someone else's OS. Now that the hardware program is a drag on the stock price and investor/analyst sentiment, he is throwing out a drop dead date of September so that investors now assume that it will happen. At most, he says that he thinks they have a shot at profitability. He has no strategy as far as the carriers are concerned. Direct sales are simply a way of avoiding the high costs of marketing these devices. It's been a low-risk low-return hardware strategy.

I think you may be right in that he thought he couldn't win. That's a different thing than the reality of whether he could win - or whether someone more talented could have won. BlackBerry's HW moves have been textbook examples of sheer incompetence: no advertising and high pricing. On what planet was that going to work. Answer: not even stupid aliens would try that.

It may be too late now to do the right thing, and the will isn't there anyway. That's what so frustrating to see.

Posted via CB10

[world traveler and former ceo]

Hi _dimi_ !!

I always enjoy reading your thoughts on the matter. I'm willing to bet that Chen has no thoughts of leaving hardware in Sept/2016. He is trying to buy time to make his plan work and I do believe that his version of breakeven occurs this year. His version will include a possible go it alone approach away from the reliance on MOST carriers where they seem to fail miserably. I believe ShopBlackBerry, Amazon and other online approaches to selling HW, along with financing, are the eventual outcomes of his strategy. He will look at 500,000 a Q and map out a strategy for mid to high tier phones that are sold at a profit along with a product to take to Enterprise.

I also think that many of us knew that a breakeven number like 5 MM was way out of line and needed to be updated. The media and analysts ran with that figure but you would have to be silly to believe it hadn't dropped on huge ASP gains in Q3. I think he has ways to reduce that number from 3 MM down to 2 MM before the year is out by following my online approach to the sales of phones. If you want a PRIV, a slab or a Classic, you will order it from BlackBerry, or, online for the most part with carriers who want to sell BB's, still carrying them. The ASP would jump high, much lower logistics for moving inventory and therefore a profitable business model at lower volumes. He could even spin off that HW business once he gets to that threshold of breakeven, or, sell the entire suite including patents for a decent price. Do you know how many companies were worth a $ 1 B bucks without a hope of turning a profit? Even our software EMM friends like MOBL and Good sold for high valuations with nothing going for them. The hardware business is profitable at some level as long as they match demand with a distribution system that works.

Look at Apple, what a mess, they are now dropping their base price to $ 399.00 with the same logistics to bring that handset to market. They will die using this formula. You get a phone that you already owned for 3 years, at a much lower ASP for Apple, and, you have to go through the same hurdles to sell that unit to consumers on mass. What a terrible mess they are in. I'm already shopping for my new iPhone 7 and its a 5s for $ 180.00 bucks! This idea is like BlackBerry coming out with a BB 9900. Sure that phone was cool, but times have changed and people are watching TV on their phones, there is zero reason to buy a phone from Apple on launch day, forget the lineups.

If BlackBerry took my advice and launched a separate company setup for a 299..00/Slab, a $ 399.00 PKB and a $ 999.00/high-end secure phone, they wouldn't launch a new one for two years minimum and each phone is profitable at an annual run rate 1,000,000 units, they would make good money. I don't care about Verizon/T-Mob or the rest, only carriers like Bell/Rogers get the phone or only third tier companies like Mobility etc., get the phone on a plan, a system that is simple, easy to inventory and sells without a massive fixed cost to run on BB's part. That works. You decide what lives and what dies, a Passport+?? maybe, a Z30+, a Classic+, a Priv+, you figure out what sells and that's it. I would have 85% of ads run online, little to nothing on TV, lots of launch stuff for online review and that's it. I noticed that no one here talks about BlackBerry direct ads on ABC Nightly News after 6:00 PM for the Priv. It was a great short mention of the Priv but no one here even mentioned it so dump the effort!

As for tax relief, we got $ 17 MM this Q for the restructuring but I'm afraid there is nothing for HW until they lose money on the blowout of inventory. It doesn't happen up front on a launch. Let's get all of the HW available around the world from one source, say Amazon and a couple of working solutions with carriers and the like. Then when you finally hit a home-run you can crank up the volume at your pace with new contracts going to carriers that matter.

Remember, Samsung and Apple can't play this game, they would go under.

PS. A special thanks to those of you who worked late last night rebutting the silly season arguments for why BlackBerry sucks, I grabbed a beer and didn't watch men's figure skating because your work was that good. Imagine how many iPhone users had nothing to distract them from skating last night ............

Some very good points... I think Chen is moving as quickly as he can to a direct sell model... and to a model that reduces costs as much as possible...he is not used to failing so he will try to make hardware work. I like your idea of spinning off a separate company for mobile... with the remaining company becoming a software / services company...

Posted via CB10

[Corbu]

If I had a nickel for every time that Chen indicated he was getting out of hardware . . . I'd have a quarter!

If I had a nickel for every time every other expert on the planet, including on this thread, indicated he should get out of hardware... I'd be a millionaire!

[dalinxz]

My SF indicator just triggered. All aboard! LOL

Let the clowns play!

One interesting point was that BlackBerry can sell their products but carriers are the problem!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

BlackBerry has a victim mentality, it's always someone else, never them.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[bbjdog]

If I had a nickel for every time every other expert on the planet, including on this thread, indicated he should get out of hardware... I'd be a millionaire!

If that happens, we share the millions (50/50.) lol

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[Corbu]

If that happens, we share the millions (50/50.) lol

If that happens, we celebrate the $1,000,000 party with the faithful!

[bbjdog]

BlackBerry has a victim mentality, it's always someone else, never them.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

Thanks for pointing the finger! If you want to search my post, you will find that 1-2 years ago I stated that carriers (middle person) were the problem (including Canadian carriers.) I will not say anything else on this matter or go into any depth. Monkey out!



Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[Corbu]

Props to BerryFlow

[bbjdog]

If that happens, we celebrate the $1,000,000 party with the faithful!

Totally agree with you, but my list doesn't have Bungaboy (Habs fan). LOL

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[sidhuk]

Totally agree with you, but my list doesn't have Bungaboy (Habs fan). LOL

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

Again. Stop playing victim like BlackBerry. Get an iphone.


Posted Via blackberry passport.

[Corbu]

OT: Terry Gou
Foxconn Chief Promises Sharp Turnaround - WSJ

Foxconn Chief Promises Sharp Turnaround

Terry Gou seals $3.5 billion deal for Japanese electronics maker at signing ceremony

SAKAI, Japan—Foxconn Technology Group chief Terry Gou on Saturday formally signed a $3.5 billion deal to put Sharp Corp. under his control and promised a successful rescue of the troubled Japanese electronics maker.

Foxconn, which has prospered as an assembler of Apple Inc.’s iPhones, faces a challenge in keeping Sharp among the leading group of smartphone-display makers after marathon negotiations left Sharp in limbo for months.

Mr. Gou flew from Taiwan to join Sharp’s chief executive, Kozo Takahashi, for a signing ceremony at a waterfront factory near Osaka that makes large flat-panel display screens. The factory was established by Sharp but didn’t turn profitable until Foxconn took over the management in 2012—a success the companies said was a symbol of how they could work together now all of Sharp is set to come under Foxconn’s control.

“I wouldn’t have spent this much time and energy if I didn’t have a road map to turn around Sharp. Hon Hai’s investment in Sharp will work,” said Mr. Gou.

The self-made billionaire long hoped to acquire Sharp’s expertise in making displays. The expensive component could help Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., further diversify from low-margin contract manufacturing.

Even if the deal fails to go through owing to unexpected events, it permits Mr. Gou to buy Sharp’s display business on its own. That is one of the favorable terms he won in a final month of hard bargaining that also reduced the deal’s total value by nearly $2.5 billion from his original proposal.

Sharp plans to issue new common and preferred shares that would give Foxconn a 66% stake initially. Foxconn can convert the preferred shares into common shares starting in July 2017, which could increase its stake to 72%. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. advised Foxconn, while a unit of Mizuho Financial Group Inc. advised Sharp.

Mr. Takahashi said at Saturday’s ceremony that he hoped Foxconn’s aggressive negotiating style would now be put to work on behalf of Sharp’s products.

“I’ve met so many Foxconn people, especially during the last-minute due-diligence and negotiation phases,” he said. “I was surprised at their powerful and speedy negotiating and decision making.”

Mr. Takahashi didn’t discuss his own future but praised his new boss. “Mr. Gou embodies the force and spirit of rising Asia,” he said.

People familiar with the matter have said he and some other Sharp board members are likely to step down in June. The deal gives Foxconn control over the majority of the board.

The deal’s success is likely to hinge in large part on Sharp’s ability to lead in next-generation display technology, including organic light-emitting diode displays that Apple is expected to use in some iPhones as soon as next year. The OLED technology is currently dominated by Samsung Electronics Co., which makes more than 95% of the global supply according to Beijing-based research firm Sigma Intell.

Sharp lags far behind, and the turmoil surrounding its sale made matters worse by inducing much of the company’s OLED team to leave, according to former Sharp display engineers.

“Suppose everything goes well, a realistic timeline for Foxconn-Sharp to start supplying OLED displays would be 2020,” said Yasuo Nakane, an analyst at Mizuho Securities.

“I am committed to make speedy investments in Sharp to help develop the next-generation display technology,” said Mr. Gou.

He said he also saw “big potential” for Sharp’s improvements in existing liquid-crystal displays. Some analysts say the OLED technology still has weaknesses, such as inefficient energy use, and isn’t guaranteed to become the standard.

At the news conference, Mr. Gou repeatedly expressed his respect for Sharp engineers who have invented many unique products, including a recently introduced air purifier that doubles as a mosquito catcher.

“I will provide my full-fledged support for Sharp to become a respected, cutting-edge consumer electronics brand world-wide,” Mr. Gou said. “I love Sharp because of Sharp’s innovative engineering culture.”

[bbjdog]

Again. Stop playing victim like BlackBerry. Get an iphone.


Posted Via blackberry passport.

Banana phone will be better.

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

[bungaboy]

Again. Stop playing victim like BlackBerry. Get an iphone.


Posted Via blackberry passport.

Better yet Apple just invented innovated a . . .

Pronunciation
(UK) IPA(key): /ˈdɪktəfəʊn/

[sidhuk]

http://www.techinsider.io/what-are-t...-papers-2016-4

Posted Via blackberry passport.

[TGIS]

Banana phone will be better.

Posted via my BlackBerry Passport

And more functional too

 Z10 STL100-3/10.3.2.2876

[bbjdog]

It truly is.

[Superfly_FR]

His guys and thanks both for the in deep comments and the smiles
Let's get back on topic a bit, it's not enough we compile a lot here, we also have to keep a relatively clean and focused discussion !

Have a great week !
SF

[zlatno]

Lots of good comments on the board this weekend. Here are some of my thoughts.
I start with the fundamental belief that Chen is not an *****. You don't get to his stature if you don't understand business basics.
With that in mind I look at the question of why he has not spent more on marketing. If you listen to him he has consistently said that the enterprise is his market and the consumer is not. In that case I would not expect him to spend any money on marketing to the consumer except possibly to let shareholders know BBRY is still alive. I am not in the circles of the senior executives of enterprises so I have no idea of what marketing is done to that market but I do know it is significantly different than mass marketing.
Chen realized that they had lost the consumer phone battle when he came on board but he also knew that that was the only image the market and the stock market understood so he needed to move it forward with all the diligence of a good businessman and try to get it so that it wasn't a drain while he created this other reality of what BBRY is. I noticed on this ER the media was finally focusing on the software view of the company. As that takes hold we will see him tweak the message to bring a more balanced image of the company. He needs hardware to survive but not overshadow the rest of the company.
I think we need to watch for the bundle in the next couple quarters. If the media stops thinking of BBRY as hardware and starts to see it as a secure solution provider that can deliver from hardware to networks to containerized apps we will start to get the real picture of the future.
On the topic of a lower end Priv...my first reaction is that that space is already crowded so why would he go there. Again starting with the belief that he isn't an ***** what am I missing. I then realized that if I look at a typical Org chart for an enterprise it is triangular in shape. The volume increases as you go down through the company. If I am targeting the enterprise with high end phones that will only fill the needs of the top of the triangle. If I want to bundle I need to solve my customer's needs for a phone for the next level down. I can't just say I have a bundle you should commit to but it has big holes. If I can fill the holes I can have focused conversations with the decision makers to convince them to buy.
To get to that conversation takes a different kind of marketing than most of us would ever even see.
When I first invested I had not given up on the consumer space so my expectations were wrong and not met but I really like how skillfully the company has been managed to create this new few of the future. I realize that it will be a longer slower rise in share price but it is a lot stronger base with huge potential.

My two cents worth.

Posted via CB10

Always good posts on this board.
Heins held the same position as Chen now holds.
Why spend a lot on marketing when the PRIV wasn't even available? I know that the PRIV is now available in about 30+ countries, but it seems to me that is very recent. During Xmas holidays (the time you would spend on marketing), the PRIV wasn't readily available. I don't think Chen is pushing the PRIV solely on the enterprise. I just think there were delays that Chen didn't expect.
If Chen was looking only at the enterprise market, why would he have entered the Android market??? And to separate enterprise/consumer doesn't make sense anymore. I use my phone at work and at home. I don't know many people, if any, that have separate phones.
BlackBerry doesn't NEED hardware to survive. BB(RY) would do fine without it. BUT if they ever hit it big with a new device (and I still expect a lot from the PRIV) while still growing software, ... cha-ching!!! If BlackBerry ever get back up to 1M devices per Q, that would be huge.
I repeat: It seems that the PRIV was not readily available in many markets until recently.

[Corbu]

BlackBerry Puts Greater Privacy and Control in Hands of All BBM Users

April 04, 2016 00:01 ET

BlackBerry Puts Greater Privacy and Control in Hands of All BBM Users

With BBM, what you share is always yours to control - even once it's left your phone

WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - April 4, 2016) - BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ:BBRY)(TSX:BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced the launch of a new BBM release on iOS�, Android™ and BlackBerry� smartphones. With this new release*, BBM users can now take advantage of enhanced privacy and control features that allow them to take control over the messages and content that they share without any subscription fees.

BBM users can 'Retract' their message and pictures from recipients to take them back from their phone if they were sent as a mistake, or if they no longer wish them to be accessible. Plus, by setting a timer, users can control how long contacts can view messages and pictures that have been shared or communicate their location for only as long as they want to.

"Building on the renowned immediacy, reliability and security inherent to BBM, the new release provides unmatched level of privacy and control to BBM users without any subscription fees," said Matthew Talbot, SVP, BBM at BlackBerry. "Keeping control over the messages and content that they share, BBM users can be ensured that what they share is always theirs to control."

Additional key features include**:

Forward messages from one chat to another
Ability to mute notifications for a multi-person chat on Android
Scroll through all pictures shared within a 1:1 or multi-person chat on Android
Choose if users want pictures taken within BBM chats saved to their device
Video sharing improvements - capture and share larger videos on iOS
Redesigned chat screen look and feel on iOS
Multi-select mode to allow multiple messages to be deleted, retracted, or forwarded at once on iOS
Retract and edit messages in group chats on BlackBerry 10
Retract chat - retract all sent messages when you end a chat on BlackBerry 10
Marshmallow (Android 6.0) support

[anon(8865116)]

Always good posts on this board.
Heins held the same position as Chen now holds.
Why spend a lot on marketing when the PRIV wasn't even available? I know that the PRIV is now available in about 30+ countries, but it seems to me that is very recent. During Xmas holidays (the time you would spend on marketing), the PRIV wasn't readily available. I don't think Chen is pushing the PRIV solely on the enterprise. I just think there were delays that Chen didn't expect.
If Chen was looking only at the enterprise market, why would he have entered the Android market??? And to separate enterprise/consumer doesn't make sense anymore. I use my phone at work and at home. I don't know many people, if any, that have separate phones.
BlackBerry doesn't NEED hardware to survive. BB(RY) would do fine without it. BUT if they ever hit it big with a new device (and I still expect a lot from the PRIV) while still growing software, ... cha-ching!!! If BlackBerry ever get back up to 1M devices per Q, that would be huge.
I repeat: It seems that the PRIV was not readily available in many markets until recently.

"if Chen was looking only at the enterprise market why would he have entered the android market"

Because the app problem isn't just a consumer problem. Enterprise apps are widely available and often selling points for big customers, and it's all IOS and Android. It's actually another reason they wanted to buy Good because Good offers an app container solution that is used to "secure" work apps.

As for the 1 million comment, that would be great but I'm not holding my breath unless they substantially lower the price or offer a new phone asap. Phone sales fell off a cliff and they know it. I'm not the target demographic for a Priv, but based on the rollout so far, people aren't buying.

[Corbu]

Last Friday:
BlackBerry Enterprise Customers Migrate to Good Secure EMM Suites

April 01, 2016 07:05 ET

BlackBerry Enterprise Customers Migrate to Good Secure EMM Suites

WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - April 1, 2016) - BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ:BBRY)(TSX:BB), a global leader in mobile communications, announced today strong traction with Good� Secure EMM Suites, with more than one hundred customers worldwide - covering tens of thousands of users - adopting the EMM solution. These customers are seamlessly moving to the recently introduced EMM platform, enhancing their secure mobility management, workforce productivity, and communication and collaboration capabilities. The new Good Secure EMM Suites provide simple and flexible options for customers to deploy industry-leading security across devices, apps, content and data. These tailored mobility suites meet the current and future needs of businesses of any size through a single integrated offering of BES�12, Good Dynamics and WatchDox� by BlackBerry.

Customers are embracing this newest EMM platform from BlackBerry because of its multi-OS support from a single console with iOS, Android (including Android for Work and Samsung KNOX), BlackBerry, Windows and Mac OS - and for any ownership model (BYOD, COPE, COBO), even in mixed environments. Adoption also lets customers simplify infrastructure and commercial framework by consolidating licensing and architectures of their heritage environments from BlackBerry and Good. It also enables them to manage an increasingly complex set of custom and 3rd party applications through the Good Secure EMM Suites.

"We have chosen BlackBerry's Good Secure Enterprise and Collaboration Suites as it is an EMM platform that will help us mobilize our business in the future," said Gil Gouty, Chief Technical Officer, Caisse Nationale d'Assurance Vieillesse.

"We are very excited about Good Work and Good Dynamics providing secure container and collaboration apps. The new Good Secure Collaboration EMM Suite, including the BES12 multi-OS EMM platform, is very promising and we expect it to be a long-term solution for our organization to build out our mobile app program and drive productivity anytime, anywhere while maintaining the security of our data and network," said Stephan Schleibinger, Head of Front Office, MBDA Deutschland GmbH.

"Customers are commending BlackBerry for building a comprehensive set of capabilities that helps them achieve business outcomes immediately, regardless of where they are on the mobile maturity curve," said Carl Wiese, President Global Sales at BlackBerry. "The Good Suites provide customers with a unique solution in the marketplace - access to thousands of secure productivity applications, custom apps, secure document management, Identity and Access Management solutions delivered on any device through a single vendor."

BlackBerry manages the mobile infrastructure of tens of thousands of customers worldwide. In the most recent quarter over 3,600 customer wins have been added, including competitive wins.