[kfh227]

When are we going to see impact of BlackBerry stopping royalty/licensing fee payments to Adobe and others?
Wasn't there some significant amount of money (100s of Millions) that was suppose to drop from BlackBerry's quarterly expenses? I forgot what that was for and when it was to happen.

Nov 2014. Almost 800-1000 mill.

BlackBerry Z30. The best smart phone.

I thought it was 800 mil dropping to <500mill in Nov.

BB10 4 ME

Is there a source for any of this? 10-Q, 10-K, etc?

[spiller]

In for some June '16 9 strikes before the bell today. And some more common shares. Was really tempted to try for some Jan 9 '15 9 strikes but figure the real juicy part should happen in March...followed by a string of upgrades.

If it tanks to $8.50 still lots of time for March ER with Classic and BES 12 revenue. But....I still have a feeling we see $12 before the close of this year. I see a beat on Friday and I'm hoping they have 2.5M device sales or revs could be hurting....

[Munx]

800 million annual royalty expired in November. Heavily discussed on stocktwits and seeking alpha.

Posted via CB10

[Corbu]

Sean Silcoff from the G&M doing what he always does:
Five things to know about the BlackBerry Classic launching Wednesday - The Globe and Mail

Getting slightly irritated and bored with this act but nothing new from the G&M and this writer. Since it's out there, I thought it was better to share with all of you.

Don't you love the Canadian media...

SEAN SILCOFF
The Globe and Mail

On Wednesday, BlackBerry Ltd. launches its latest smartphone, the Classic, at events in New York City, Frankfurt and Singapore. The Classic is the company�s second smartphone launched this fall by CEO John Chen aimed at the �enterprise,� or business and government market, after the Passport debuted in September. Here are five things to note about Wednesday�s launch:

1) Defence, not offence

The Classic is aimed at diehard BlackBerry users who like a good keyboard and have eschewed the company�s newer, touch-centric devices and those made by Apple and Android-based manufacturers in favour of holding on to their older Bolds. The Classic is not expected to grow BlackBerry�s dwindling market share, but is aimed at defending what it has by convincing these die-hards to upgrade to its latest offering: Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette forecasts BlackBerry will sell about 8 million smartphones in its next fiscal year, about the same as this year.

2) A Bold step backward�

The Classic restores some of the key features of older devices that disappeared with the release of its updated BlackBerry 10 operating system in 2013. These include the �belt� of four physical keys � two for phone calls, one for the menu and one to go one step back � anchored by a mouse-like trackpad. Also returning are several shortcut tasks activated by striking certain keys (for example, C for composing a message). BlackBerry has even brought back its rudimentary video game Brick Breaker, a kind of Pong for bored executives stuck in airport lounges with time to kill.

3) �But it�s not all retro

The Classic uses the BlackBerry 10 operating system, which still requires a bit of getting used to for older users, even after two updates since its launch. The Internet browser runs a lot faster than on the Bold and there are far more apps than before, after BlackBerry struck a deal with Amazon to feature its Android app store on the platform.

4) Better, not best

For BlackBerry users who are still using older Bolds or Curves, the Classic will seem like an improvement: the screen is larger (3.5 inches across diagonally vs. 2.8 inches for the Bold), the camera is sharper and takes panorama and �burst� shots, the machine is faster and sturdier with a steel rib around the perimeter. But the camera, at 8 megapixels, lags the industry standard (13 megapixels), the processor is not as fast as the one on the Nexus 6 phablet and the screen is smaller than those found on best-selling Apple and Samsung devices. While the apps experience is better, the amount of available programs trails well behind the competition � and the trackpad will have limited usefulness on many of apps that were written for touchscreen devices.

5) The Classic won�t save or sink the company

The Classic is one of several pieces in Mr. Chen�s plan to turn around the company by focusing on its core business and government users. That said, if Classic doesn�t sell well, it could hasten BlackBerry�s exit from the device business. On the other hand, if huge numbers of Bold users upgrade to the Classic, it could hasten the already steady decline of the company�s lucrative monthly fees generated by its older devices. The more important question is whether the company can generate substantial new revenues from selling services and software to its enterprise customers.

[BanffMoose]

Is there a source for any of this? 10-Q, 10-K, etc?

Here are some snippets from a recent blog post I found on the matter from IAM magazine [emphasis is mine]:
To BlackBerry investors: IP is a necessary operational cost ? but can also be revenue generator - Blog - Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) - Maximising IP Value for Business

Back in January, BlackBerry CFO James Yersh reportedly told analysts that he expected the company to be cash flow positive by the end of fiscal year 2015. This would in part be accounted for by a reduction in �intellectual property (IP) expenses linked to patent royalties BlackBerry pays out to third-parties�, the �annual fixed costs� for these dropping from $800 million to zero by November 2014.

But on the latter point, it is important to remember that licensing takes two to tango. It is not just going to be the decisions made by BlackBerry�s senior management that dictate what its IP costs are going to be. Third-party rights holders may not agree that the Canadian company has paid all of its dues. This could lead to disputes and litigation � something which may end up costing a lot more than licence fees.

Secondly, it is worth remembering that the full cost of intellectual property is not represented on balance sheets; the figures that are included there typically relate to acquired IP assets and licensing, and not to the internally generated IP that makes up the vast majority of a portfolio belonging to a company like BlackBerry, which has conducted three decades-worth of its own R&D.

Investors further need to understand that even if this $800 million saving in IP costs is realistic, it is unlikely to be permanent. Complex cross-industry IP licensing is part and parcel of the telecoms market. If Chen and his team do succeed in turning BlackBerry once more into a healthy business with a long-term future, then IP spend is most likely going to mount � whether in terms of licensing-in or buying from other market participants, filing more patents or becoming involved in more IP-related litigation.

It is worth noting here that the Canadian company launched a new business unit named BlackBerry Technology Solutions back in August. This entity comprises BlackBerry�s �innovative technology assets", including its software platforms and its extensive patent portfolio. �Our broad global portfolio of 44,000 patents is of value to several industry segments,� said Chen at the time. �Combining all these assets into a single business unit� will create operational synergies and new revenue streams, furthering our turnaround strategy.� From the sounds of it, a renewed push to license patents and software assets is precisely what the company�s senior management has in mind. It is not clear if the $800 million reduction in IP costs mentioned by Yersh takes into account any of BlackBerry�s own royalty streams balancing its licensing-in payments.

My guess is that BlackBerry negotiated a certain level of royalty payments to third parties for their projected levels of sales of Z10's, Q10's, Q5's, Z30's, etc. I'm guessing that these fees are now considered "prepaid royalties" until hardware sales volume catches up to what they paid for. Once they exceed the original projections, licensing payments resume.

[bungaboy]

Here she is!

Attachment 321168

Door wide open for this one.

Almost peed the bed.

[morganplus8]

Hi Morgan!

The above quote kind of cleared things up for me but I was confused by your post from a week ago when you said,

"The drop in oil is not healthy for the stock market when it occurs this quickly. So far, oil is not affecting the price of Gold, but if you see Gold start to lose ground, the market will see other investments give up their gains to support losses."

I watched gold stocks drift lower all week (as predicted) an they seem to be bouncing back this morning (now that I've written that, I expect them to reverse again, Damn that Quantum interference!)

But I still don't "get" it. If Oil is trending down (due to over-supply) and taking the market down with it, I would have though gold would go up because costs of mining would be decreasing and demand for gold would go up (safehaven, goldbugs etc.).

Can you shed some more light on this and maybe comment on the uptick of gold this morning vis-a-via the overall market.

Thanks

Hey StormieTwo !!!

Sorry, I missed the action in the market all day so I can't speak for what happened today. I think you are a couple of beers away from figuring this all out! There are two main factors that determine the price of gold, that's cross currencies and hedging/sales. You likely are aware that when the US dollar raises, gold drops; that inverse relationship has been around for many years. The second one is all about sales, they occur to support a countries' currency and forward/hedge sales occur when the producers see weaker demand down the line. All of these influences collide at some point to cause a severe market in "something". Yesterday, the Russian currency plunged 20% in one day! Let's have that first beer now, as that is the good news. Their currency is falling off a cliff and that is what the rest of the world wants to see. Secondly, they have been buying gold with all of their energy funds and now they will be forced to sell much of that gold if they EVER wish to import another product during Putin's lifetime. The good news comes to America, the US will become net exporters of energy in the next few years, this is huge.

Energy has been the "gold standard" for many countries not including the US, looking forward though, it is a real economic boost for the US to become the leader of the industrial world again.

But along with weak oil is unemployment and lower costs and so it is a double edge knife for mining when their CAPEX, along with the energy industry, as you can imagine, CAPEX for those industries are way out of whack with the revenue/profit of each of their commodities. We are going to see trillions of dollars wiped out by those industries, .... to be seen in much lower revenues to governments and finally ... to see "other" investments get hurt as we look for other ways to raise capital to offset our losses. What you want to see is a more gradual decline, not this wholesale decline that is crushing Russia this week. We have to be careful what we wish for! Now have that well desired second beer! GL

[Shanerredflag]

I have an ex girlfriend who says that she's open to find a way to get back together but I'd have to be better looking, make a lot more money, and be a better person, overall. Other than that she's definitely open to it.

Lol...good one.

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[Shanerredflag]

So the EDC made this loan 2 years ago and now it's making news because it's been paid back?

Yes...similar to the 'news' which started this slide two weeks ago...BS

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[spiller]

How far has Blackberry come since December 2013 earnings - when it popped to $8 over the next 5 days after the ER.

And since three months ago, when it popped over $10 ($10.26).

Let's see. Passport exceeding expectations and demand. BES 12 launch. increase from 3.6 to 5.1M BES12 trial licenses. Classic Launch in less than 12 hours away and is sold out of pre-sale inventory (have to guess at least 500K given Chen expects THIS device to be the one to meet pent up demand). Royalties expiring or being reduced significantly. Samsung partnership to promote BES12. Wider Z3 rollout. Successful clear out of older device inventory end of November. BBM protected. BBM meetings. Blend.

Have we heard any proven bad news other than chatter about device sales plummeting (not proven), revenues declining (not proven), BES12 hasn't done anything for revenue (true, but licenses up from 3.6 to 5.1 seems like a positive trend to me....Organizations don't test drive with that kind of volume without intent to use the service).

And yet stock sits right somewhere in the middle of that $8 Dec '13 post earning pop and $10.26 Sept '14 post earning pop.

Boy I sure hope the shorties are forced to scramble starting Friday at 7am.

[rarsen]

My excuses in advance if this was already submitted, another positive article with the tide slowly changing

16 Reasons You Might Just LOVE The BlackBerry Passport | Know Your Mobile

GL to all BB this week

[Shanerredflag]

I'm with you rarsen...apologies if already submitted:
http://jdem.cz/brbnb7

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[dalinxz]

I really don't see them having pre sold 500k units, I think people are setting themselves up for disappointment. I'm guessing pre-orders are in the range of 10-50k units, let's be realistic here.

Posted via CB10

[Shanerredflag]

Perhaps, and agree...aim low.

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[bbjdog]

Okay how about a great number for pre orders of Blackberry Classic tomorrow. The phone has been out for a day at amazon pre orders
and it sits in spot 27 of unlocked cell phones. Passport sits in 12 spot.

[bbjdog]

I really don't see them having pre sold 500k units, I think people are setting themselves up for disappointment. I'm guessing pre-orders are in the range of 10-50k units, let's be realistic here.

Posted via CB10

knock off this ****! Chen said they would have more then the passport, so 200,000 plus.

[Shanerredflag]

knock off this ****! Chen said they would have more then the passport, so 200,000 plus.

Agree...aim high.

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[Shanerredflag]

Lol...

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[dalinxz]

knock off this ****! Chen said they would have more then the passport, so 200,000 plus.

The Passport weren't 200k pre orders, as far as I'm aware. They had already been released in three countries hadn't they?

Posted via CB10

[DaSchwantz]

Thursday I might do some call options.

Posted via CB10

I doubled my call position this morning...that's all I want now prior to earnings.

Posted via CB10

[Shanerredflag]

The Passport weren't 200k pre orders, as far as I'm aware. They had already been released in three countries hadn't they?

Posted via CB10

200K is widely considered the initial build number, however, is that channel or?? Anyone's guess.

Passport'n stuff all day long.

[Corbu]

Lol...

Agree!

[bbjdog]

200K is widely considered the initial build number, however, is that channel or?? Anyone's guess.

Passport'n stuff all day long.

Shopblackberry and Amazon are not channels, they sell direct.

[cjcampbell]

200k is simply the number that they had received PO's for going into launch morning. Many took that statement to believe that is what was sold in 2 days and since Amazon and Shop BB were sold out, that must have been the first run volume. I could be wrong, but BlackBerry never stated what the run volume was did they?

Posted via CB10

[Shanerredflag]

Shopblackberry and Amazon are not channels, they sell direct.

Yes...Chen started the 200K thing, but never explained it.
I...like you want nothing but stellar numbers

Passport'n stuff all day long.