[Corbu]

En fran�ais:
BlackBerry mise sur la voiture autonome

[Corbu]

BlackBerry announces move into self-driving cars, invests in Ottawa | Ottawa Citizen

[Corbu]

rarsen, fanBBRY, world traveler and former ceo and 7 others like this.

[Superfly_FR]

Just set an order for 200 300 shares @ CAD 11.46 (just above my average).
Cash needed for Santa
GL to all !

[app_Developer]

Will be very interesting to see QNX compete in a field where their software really makes a lot of sense, and where they have some real technical advantages. I've been a skeptic of QNX in phones, but I'm a big believer in QNX in autonomous vehicles. The question is will they position themselves to make real money in these new applications?

Now should I buy more BBRY before or after earnings? I think after.

[Corbu]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/19/bu...ial-deals.html
Canada’s Deal Maven Is Hands-On, Hands-Off

Canada’s busy deal maven is, in a sense, both hands-on and not. The Fairfax Financial boss Prem Watsa has drafted an airtight policy for the insurance company’s $4.9 billion deal to buy its Swiss rival Allied World. And BlackBerry, where Mr. Watsa is both the lead director and a major investor, is trying to parlay its smartphone history into hands-free driving success.

Fairfax’s offer for Allied, unveiled on Sunday, looks anodyne on the surface. The 18 percent premium to combine two players in the property and casualty market is hardly over the top. But Allied will continue to operate as a stand-alone company, so there are no planned cost savings. Fairfax’s pitch is that the deal will diversify its earnings — and that both firms have good track records.

Mr. Watsa has taken some of the sting out of the premium tail for Fairfax investors: Half of the $900 million cash component will come from a special dividend Allied will pay to its own shareholders. Governance, though, is more troubling. Mr. Watsa owns 43 percent of Fairfax but is not excluding himself from the vote to approve the deal. It would be a more hands-off decision if he followed the example of Elon Musk, who earlier this year left it to the other shareholders to decide whether Tesla Motors and SolarCity should merge.

Fairfax also wants written support from other big owners to tip approval past the 50 percent needed, perhaps avoiding a vote involving all shareholders. The company has also left itself the flexibility to switch most of the financing for the deal to cash, which would remove the need for any vote at all.

Mr. Watsa’s fingerprints may not be as visible in BlackBerry’s decision to invest more in autonomous cars, but he runs the board and is a crucial voice at the once high-flying tech company. Back in 2013 he made an offer to buy it, a Fairfax investment firm is the second-largest shareholder, and Fairfax is BlackBerry’s “leading lender,” according to its chief executive, John Chen.

Driverless-car technology is not an absurd road for BlackBerry to follow. Its QNX division already has some expertise and has Ford Motor as a client. The problem is that there are plenty of more specialized, deeper-pocketed companies on the autonomous bandwagon already. Mr. Watsa may yet have to take a firmer grip at BlackBerry, too.

[Corbu]

Updated version of earlier article:
BlackBerry Accelerates Push Into Tech for Self-Driving Cars - WSJ

OTTAWA— BlackBerry Ltd. on Monday announced plans to invest about 100 million Canadian dollars ($76 million) in its push to develop software for the operation of driverless cars, hiring up to 600 engineers, as the company forges into new business lines after its retreat from smartphones.

A hub will be established in the Canadian capital of Ottawa to focus on software development under BlackBerry’s QNX platform, the Waterloo, Ontario company said.

BlackBerry Chief Executive John Chen unveiled the company’s plans at an event at the company’s offices in suburban Ottawa, in which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also appeared. Mr. Trudeau said BlackBerry’s announcement on autonomous driving indicates the company “is ready to push the limits of innovation once again.”

Mr. Chen said the plan is to spend about C$100 million over the next few years at the Ottawa center. Most of the money would be focused on recruiting up to 600 engineers. The company employs roughly 5,000 employees, down from about 17,000 at BlackBerry’s peak at the end of fiscal 2011.

Building software for auto makers “is going to be a fast-growing business for us,” Mr. Chen told reporters. “This is only the beginning of what you are seeing here. Every car manufacturer is a potential customer of ours. So this could have a lot of operating space.”

Autonomous cars rely on a complex system of software and sensors to avoid hitting other vehicles, to read traffic signals, and to assess road conditions.

BlackBerry’s pivot toward autonomous driving comes after the company announced it would stop directly manufacturing smartphones and would instead license its technology to third-party manufacturers. It has already signed agreements with manufacturers in Indonesia and China, and is in talks with an Indian-based company.

‘People ask if we are competing with Google. We are not competing with Google. We would love them to use our technology.’
—Blackberry CEO John Chen

BlackBerry QNX was first developed as a software platform aimed as part of the fundamental components of a power plant’s operating system, but has later become an integral part of a car’s “infotainment” system. The software is currently used in more than 60 million cars, including ones made by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co.

BlackBerry put QNX into its own software division back in 2014 as the company looked to address the global markets for secure, reliable communications and embedded applications.

Mr. Chen said he would be looking to recruit partners, and opened the door to possible investment from the Canadian government. He declined to say how much of financial backing he was seeking from Ottawa, adding though it “was not going to be a lot.” Mr. Trudeau didn’t mention financial backing in his remarks at BlackBerry’s Ottawa offices.

“We intend to build this as a center of excellence in Canada,” Mr. Chen said. “People ask if we are competing with Google. We are not competing with Google. We would love them to use our technology.”

Daniel Chan, an analyst with TD Securities, believes revenue from BlackBerry’s QNX business has been growing at “double-digit rates” recently. Its deal with Ford is a sign that the software company could “aggressively pursue relationships with automobile manufacturers directly.”

In October, BlackBerry and Ford signed a deal where the software firm was designated as a “Tier One” supplier for the auto maker. BlackBerry was also tapped by the Ontario government last month as one of three companies in a pilot program to test driverless cars on provincial roads.

BlackBerry reports third-quarter fiscal 2017 results Tuesday morning. Analysts expect the company will report revenue of $331.9 million for the quarter and an adjusted loss of one cent a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

[Corbu]

BlackBerry QNX Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Centre (AVIC)

When

The BlackBerry QNX Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Centre was announced on December 19, 2016 by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Early results from the centre will be unveiled in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2017, showcasing the close collaboration with organizations from the private, public, and academic sectors.

[spiller]

I'm going to forecast. 02 EPS. 220M Rev not that it matters. I'm not so sure though as Chen guided for full year negative EPS. Hopefully sandbagging. No details for the TCL deal of course as they are negotiating with others and it can't be public. Just need to guide positive EPS for the rest of the year, maintain 30% software growth, and shoot margins to 75%.

[Corbu]

Video:
Best for tech giants to work with us than displace us, says BlackBerry QNX Head - Video - BNN

Best for tech giants to work with us than displace us, says BlackBerry QNX Head

BlackBerry has announced it is opening a new innovation center as the company positions itself to be a player in the self-driving car industry. BNN speaks with John Wall, Senior Vice President & Head of BlackBerry QNX about what the division is working on and how it plans to stay competitive.

[Mr BBRY]

BlackBerry Reports Record GAAP Gross Margin of 67%, Driven by Growth in Software and Services Revenue

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/blackb...120000256.html

BBRY Beats!.. $.02 EPS vs analyst' consensus estimate of -$.01.

And raised guidance for 3rd consecutive quarter. I like the way things are shaping up. Great work BlackBerry! Cheers gang!

[Superfly_FR]

Oh dear, did I set the bar right ? *drumroll*
Have a great day y'all !

BlackBerry announces Q3 Fiscal 2017 results | CrackBerry.com

P.S: PM +3.11% as I type

[Superfly_FR]

Q: Did anyone tried to figure HW sales ?

[spiller]

Burned some cash? But at least we are there.... "We now expect to achieve non-GAAP EPS profitability for the full year, up from a prior range of breakeven to a five cent loss. This is the third consecutive quarter we have increased our EPS outlook, reflecting the traction we are achieving in our shift to a software business model. We also anticipate breakeven non-GAAP EPS and approximately breakeven free cash flow in Q4." profit in all businesses?

[Superfly_FR]

Sorry if posted earlier ...

"If they can prove that they have the whole package and the security, they could absolutely dominate the market" for autonomous vehicle operating systems, said Sam Fiorani, an analyst at Auto Forecast Solutions.

Switching gears, Canada's BlackBerry to open autonomous vehicle hub | Reuters

P.S: now +3.37% PM ...

[Superfly_FR]

Live stream : http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/5ft8qf8u

[Superfly_FR]

https://twitter.com/amberkanwar/stat...82904499929088

[Corbu]

BlackBerry Lifts Profit Outlook as Software Revenue Grows - WSJ

BlackBerry has been seeking to boost revenue from software and services for mobile devices

BlackBerry Ltd.’s fiscal third-quarter earnings came in better-than-expected on its growing software and services business.

The Canadian software and device company said Tuesday it had a net loss of $117 million, or 22 cents a share, in its quarter ended Nov. 30.

Adjusted to exclude items, BlackBerry earned 2 cents a share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a loss of one cent a share. A year earlier, the adjusted loss was three cents a share.

Overall first-quarter revenue fell to $289 million from $548 million a year earlier. Revenue in the second quarter totaled $334 million. BlackBerry said it generated $160 million in software and services revenue, compared with $138 million in the previous quarter.

Chief Executive John Chen said in prepared remarks that the company notched its highest gross margin in the company’s history as the firm continues to “transform our infrastructure and operations to support an enterprise software business.” Blackberry said its gross margin for the quarter was 66.8%.

The company also said it now expects to post an adjusted per-share profit for the full year, up from a prior outlook range of breaking even to a loss of five cents a share.

Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry has been seeking to boost revenue from software and services for mobile devices, after lagging behind rivals such as Apple Inc.’s iPhone and devices powered by Android, a unit of Alphabet Inc.’s Google, in the consumer smartphone market.

In its last fiscal quarter, BlackBerry announced it would stop developing hardware in-house and would instead outsource it to various partners. In recent months it has signed third-party licensing deals with Indonesian and Chinese manufacturers and is in talks with an Indian-based company.

In the last fiscal year, the company surpassed its goal of $500 million in software and services sales. In a recent interview, Mr. Chen reaffirmed that the company expects revenue in that segment to grow 30% in the current fiscal year.

Earlier this month, the company announced it would upgrade its mobile-security software platform by integrating its BES12 device-management tool with products from several companies it has acquired over the past two years, including Good Technology.

The company is also accelerating a push into technology for the auto industry, on Monday outlining plans to invest about 100 million Canadian dollars to hire as many as 600 engineers to develop software for driverless cars.

[Corbu]

alludba, fanBBRY, morganplus8 and 7 others like this.

[Corbu]

BlackBerry beats Q3 profit estimates but misses on revenue - BNN - Business News Network - Business, Finance and Markets News

[spiller]

How much is a profitable 1B Rev a year software and IP company worth? Is there any bear thesis left?

[morganplus8]

How much is a profitable 1B Rev a year software and IP company worth? Is there any bear thesis left?

Spiller - tell me, how did you come up with only $ 220 MM in revenue for your guesstimate? I was just wondering that as I saw your post today. Anyway, good call on earnings, I was looking for a positive number too and that's including an ongoing roll-out from hardware too so the numbers were great.

I can't understand how this play could be valued under $ 8.00/shr and it is so easy to get to $ 12 - $ 14 bucks for next year. I suspect they could do $ 900 MM in software next year and those margins tell you they are the leader in their sector and their growth is superior as well. Today some traders will sell on the news but I think we will duplicate last years rally and head much higher from here. Let's hit a 52 week high in the next couple of weeks. GL

Update: I often talk about the TA of the stock, BBRY has been locked in its Bollinger Bands for awhile now and today we are outside some really tight bands, The width of the bands became very narrow ($ .45/shr) and that means we are setup for an explosive move in some direction. It appears that this move is to the upside so far. There is resistance outside the bands but a strong stock can stay outside the bands for a couple of weeks until the bands play catch-up. Just another reason why I think we can go much higher here.

[Corbu]

What Canada?s Prime Minister, WSJ, and Others Say About BlackBerry?s Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Center | Inside BlackBerry

[_dimi_]

Any highlights from the CC? Can't dial in unfortunately.. especially interested in how they intend in getting to >210 million (?) in software revenue next quarter?

Posted via CB10

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Any highlights from the CC? Can't dial in unfortunately.. especially interested in how they intend in getting to >210 million (?) in software revenue next quarter?

Posted via CB10

Bla1ze hit most the highlights.... not much was said, and not many questions were even asked on the call.