[Corbu]

BlackBerry Leap unboxing and first impressions | PhoneDog

[Superfly_FR]

Barely 3MM BBRY share traded today, which has to be the lowest I've seen since I've been following this stock. My guess is that this means that there is not much interest in this stock these days, which implies that shorts have, by and large, moved on. Hopefully this will propel us much higher when buying pressure ensues.

EDIT: Yahoo Finance is acting a little whacky right now and saying its 6MM shares today. Please disregard my comment, but I still feel the concept applies. When no one is looking at a particular stock / company and then suddenly some news hits, the influx of buying pressure will cause a greater spike since the short sellers are not ready to pounce and bring it back down. This is my hope for BBRY.

Silence is gold...
Still reading, still around but not much to add to your precious additions !
Cheers and thanks!
SF

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[awindsr]

Posted via CB10

[awindsr]

IronBerry! Lol!


Posted via CB10

[CDM76]

OT: Interesting take on IoT
http://www.theverge.com/2015/5/4/854...-of-things-iot

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[awindsr]

OT: Interesting take on IoT
http://www.theverge.com/2015/5/4/854...-of-things-iot

Posted via CB10

Bad link. Might have a word Crackberry starred out?

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[rim4ever]

Bad link. Might have a word Crackberry starred out?

Posted via CB10

Indeed. See if this works:

First Click: you can?t spell ?*****? without IoT (Internet of Things) | The Verge

[Corbu]

More from the Milken Conference:

Mark Wilson, BlackBerry Chief Evangelist: from 8:20 to 13:23 (more specifically on BB)

[Mr BBRY]

More from the Milken Conference:

Mark Wilson, BlackBerry Chief Evangelist: from 8:20 to 13:23 (more specifically on BB)

[video]https://youtu.be/X3VD_90c5lw[/url]

This is worthy of a written, THANK YOU! Great find, Corbu! Those 5 minutes make me extremely excited about my investment.

"We are the most modest group in the room"
"If you we're a Silicon Valley company and you had a tenth of the technology, you'd be on the mountain top just screaming it out every day."


Happy Cinco de Mayo, gang!

[Corbu]

Busting the Myth that Security has to be Complicated | | Inside BlackBerry for Business Blog

[La Emperor]

Nanthealth: Although Blackberry was not mentioned, we know it's the Hbox..

Next, Soon-Shiong showed off a wireless appliance he called a �next-generation set-top box� to manage smart medical devices patients� homes. �We�re working with Verizon as well as AT&T to deploy these boxes into the home,� Soon-Shiong reported.

And another interesting device. I remember there was a brief discussion on this..Not sure if it came from JC during the Gadget show in Vegas.

Soon-Shiong also previewed NantPorter, a forthcoming hard drive-sized device that stores patient records, including genomic data and medical images, and communicates over a blazing-fast wireless connection of as much as 6 gigabits per second. �Telemedicine of the future is the cloud in your pocket,� Soon-Shiong said.

Soon-Shiong: We have 'Google of genome mapping'

[Bacon Munchers]

Anyone have any info on any upcoming BlackBerry announcements?
(Crickets).



We had better hear something soon with this avalanche happening.

[randall2580]

We do have the "software that will make you only want to use one phone" due in the Summertime.

[Corbu]

John Chen was the speaker at today's luncheon meeting of the Greater KW Chamber of Commerce.

More info here.
https://twitter.com/gkwcc

FTR, most relevant questions and answers. Work your way up from the bottom.

Thank you so much to @BlackBerry and John Chen for coming and speaking with us today!

John Chen: Disney has a great board of directors and is very serious with a little fun thrown in
Final question: What is it like to be on the Board of Directors at Disney?

John Chen: A good company is one that can survive a down turn. Good company culture, corporate, & not falling into complacency is important
Next question: What's your best piece of advice for business leaders today?

"At the end of the day, innovation is about talent," says @BlackBerry CEO @GKWCC luncheon; recognizes @UWaterloo leads through co-op

@Blackberry's Chen calls on fed'l gov't to build a better transp. system to make innovation super-cluster more successful!

John Chen: The govt can provide better transportation system and affordable housing can help the regions grow together and keep talent here
Next question: What role do you feel private enterprises and govt should have in fostering more tech collaboration between KW and Toronto?

John Chen: The top rated universities & the co-op program at @uwaterloo truly sets KW apart & is attracting major firms to set up shop here
Next question: What sets KW apart from competing technology regions?

John Chen: We need to build an environment to keep our university grads here. More people should be encouraged to list on TSX.
Next question for John Chen: Are the provincial and federal govts doing enough to foster tech innovation here at home?

John Chen: We don't want to try and do everything in the Internet of Things, we do want to be the most secure, such as cars & in health care
Next Question: What is the Internet of Things & how important will it be for the CDN economy and how is BB positioned to take advantage?

John Chen: We have 4 new devices coming this fiscal year. The Leap has been announced, a slider (Torch-like) device, & 2 more later in year
Next question: What's next for @BlackBerry on the handset side?

John Chen: BlackBerry is out of financial trouble, we still need to rebuild our public reputation and show we are not a company is trouble.

John Chen on role as security leader: "individuals tend to not think about security but they do care about privacy."

"Intelligent people use a @BlackBerry not a cell phone" CEO John Chen got great laughs at

A3: We need to focus on market needs & that includes understanding there are more end points for our products beyond handsets (ie Vehicles)

Our internal mind set needs to change to repair our reputation first and foremost - John Chen

Q2 for John Chen: How is BlackBerry going to maintain its reputation as a global leader?

A2 John Chen: Morale of the company is always a challenge as well as changing the mind set away from just being a handset company.

Question 2: What's been the most challenging aspect of your tenure as CEO of BlackBerry so far?

John Chen: Every company turnaround is different. The most important part of a turnaround is to establish stabilization.
First question: What lessons did you learn from your successful tenure at Sybase that have helped in your role at @BlackBerry?

For even more complete coverage, pls refer to this main CB page post by Bla1ze (props to him):
http://crackberry.com/john-chen-spea...merce-luncheon

[spiller]

John Chen was the speaker at today's luncheon meeting of the Greater KW Chamber of Commerce.

More info here.
https://twitter.com/gkwcc

FTR, most relevant questions and answers. Work your way up from the bottom.

Ok so slider should be out by August/September....if 2 more are 'later in the year' than the slider.

[BACK-2-BLACK]

We do have the "software that will make you only want to use one phone" due in the Summertime.

QNX Hypervisor?

[awindsr]

OT: for any of you "roaming around "

CRTC to force Rogers, Telus and Bell to charge less for domestic roaming

http://mobilesyrup.com/2015/05/05/cr...source=message

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[W Hoa]

Ok so slider should be out by August/September....if 2 more are 'later in the year' than the slider.

Chen did mention fiscal, rather than calendar, year:

John Chen: We have 4 new devices coming this fiscal year. The Leap has been announced, a slider (Torch-like) device, & 2 more later in year

[awindsr]

http://m.thespec.com/news-story/5603...erry-chen-says

Phones are �part of the solution� for BlackBerry, Chen says

News Business

30 minutes ago | By Terry Pender
BlackBerry | Peter Lee,Record staff

KITCHENER � The biggest challenge in BlackBerry's turnaround is convincing employees that smartphones are part of the solution and not the only answer to the company's struggling fortunes.

That was the word Tuesday from BlackBerry chief executive officer John Chen in a wide-ranging discussion with Ian McLean, president of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce, at a luncheon that attracted about 400 people to the Bingemans conference centre.

"Structurally and psychologically and mentality-wise we are still a handset company," Chen said.

"Handsets are important. This is not a binary yes or no, but we've got to make handsets part of the solution, not the only solution," he said.

The Waterloo-based smartphone maker is stable and generating cash, but it needs growth before investors and consumers believe in it again, Chen said.

A critical area for that growth, Chen said, is software and services related to the 10 billion endpoints in the World Wide Web, including medical devices, vehicles, machines and home appliances � the so-called Internet of Things.

But getting everybody on board with that strategy is hard, in part, because BlackBerry was once the dominant smartphone maker in the world.

"That mindset change has been the most difficult, and is the most challenging inside the company," Chen said.

The other major challenge for the turnaround is that the company's reputation has suffered a lot in the past three years, and that makes it hard to make new sales, Chen said.

"But that is true for every turnaround, and that can be solved," he said. "I need an inside-mentality change, and then everything else will fall into place."

Chen was appointed chief executive at BlackBerry in November 2013, and during his first three months at the helm the company, he burned through $1.1 billion in cash. The cash burn dropped to $780 million in the next quarter, and then to about $200 million. During the past two quarters, the company made some $40 million from operations.

"We are now a generator of cash," Chen said. "At least that will buy us time to be in the business."

Chen's most high-profile turnaround to date was at Sybase, a software company that had turned in 55 consecutive quarters of profit when he left. But he is very proud about his work at Pyramid Technology. It was a small company with $100 million or so in revenue, but it hit a wall after about a year.

"When I joined the company, we were one payroll away from running out of cash," Chen said.

He turned it around, grew the business and sold it to Siemens for a healthy profit. "That is the closest to death that I have seen," Chen said.

BlackBerry was the biggest employer in Waterloo Region in 2011 with a workforce of 11,000. When the staff cuts finished in June 2014, the company employed about 2,700 people here. It has since hired a few hundred in some key areas.

Chen made it clear that software, services and security are critical to the future prosperity of the company.

"We are going to make more on software and value-added know-how across every ecosystem, including peoples' phones," Chen said.

During the past year, BlackBerry has purchased three companies to help it bolster its already-vaunted security in voice, data and file-sharing. BlackBerry spends $30 million a year in that area.

While the company's stock increased significantly since Chen took over, many analysts remain skeptical, waiting for real revenue growth in software and services.

"Not long ago, the company was in deep, deep trouble," Chen said. "We are now out of financial trouble, but we have not established the growth."

Until that happens, securing new customers and growing revenue will be a challenge. There are hopeful signs, though � 2,200 new enterprise customers signed on for BlackBerry software in the last quarter.

"But still a lot are sitting on the sidelines, looking at us," Chen said. "And when we were in trouble, a lot of our competitors went into those accounts, and so we need to recapture those."

The company is working on that, but that won't happen overnight.

"We need to tell people BlackBerry not only has a strategy, but it is no longer in trouble," Chen said. "And the sooner that message gets out and registers, the sooner we will return to growth."

BlackBerry is working on new phones that will be released later this year because handsets can still be good business. But they can no longer be the company's main focus, Chen said.

The cost structure of the handset business has to change, he said.

"I mean this whole cost structure is really huge," Chen said. "We are working really hard on that. We have to be sure we make money, otherwise we can't stay in the device business. But I am hopeful we will be able to do it."

When asked what advice he has for business leaders and entrepreneurs, Chen said the fortunes of companies rise and fall. That has happened with IBM, Apple and Intel.

"The best-run businesses can withstand down time," Chen said. "Every company goes up and down. The fact that you are down does not mean you are out."

Chen also commented on the global economy. The world economy is not growing, the jobs being created in the U.S. can not sustain middle-class spending, low commodity prices have dampened the Canadian economy and the only reason there is no panic is because interest rates are low, he said.

"There is nowhere for us to put the money except the stock market," Chen said. "Everybody sees the stock price go up, they feel happy. But they shouldn't feel happy because fundamentally we have some kind of problem that might be coming.

"Hopefully, it is a soft landing. I am not an economist," Chen said. "I would prepare for some storms."



Posted via CB10

[CDM76]

Ok so slider should be out by August/September....if 2 more are 'later in the year' than the slider.

I believe BlackBerry earlier stated by end of this calendar year. 4 devices by end of fiscal year. So slider by end of 2015 and 2 new in early 2016.

Posted via CB10

[DaSchwantz]

http://m.thespec.com/news-story/5603...erry-chen-says

Phones are �part of the solution� for BlackBerry, Chen says

News Business

30 minutes ago | By Terry Pender
BlackBerry | Peter Lee,Record staff

KITCHENER � The biggest challenge in BlackBerry's turnaround is convincing employees that smartphones are part of the solution and not the only answer to the company's struggling fortunes.

That was the word Tuesday from BlackBerry chief executive officer John Chen in a wide-ranging discussion with Ian McLean, president of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce, at a luncheon that attracted about 400 people to the Bingemans conference centre.

"Structurally and psychologically and mentality-wise we are still a handset company," Chen said.

"Handsets are important. This is not a binary yes or no, but we've got to make handsets part of the solution, not the only solution," he said.

The Waterloo-based smartphone maker is stable and generating cash, but it needs growth before investors and consumers believe in it again, Chen said.

A critical area for that growth, Chen said, is software and services related to the 10 billion endpoints in the World Wide Web, including medical devices, vehicles, machines and home appliances � the so-called Internet of Things.

But getting everybody on board with that strategy is hard, in part, because BlackBerry was once the dominant smartphone maker in the world.

"That mindset change has been the most difficult, and is the most challenging inside the company," Chen said.

The other major challenge for the turnaround is that the company's reputation has suffered a lot in the past three years, and that makes it hard to make new sales, Chen said.

"But that is true for every turnaround, and that can be solved," he said. "I need an inside-mentality change, and then everything else will fall into place."

Chen was appointed chief executive at BlackBerry in November 2013, and during his first three months at the helm the company, he burned through $1.1 billion in cash. The cash burn dropped to $780 million in the next quarter, and then to about $200 million. During the past two quarters, the company made some $40 million from operations.

"We are now a generator of cash," Chen said. "At least that will buy us time to be in the business."

Chen's most high-profile turnaround to date was at Sybase, a software company that had turned in 55 consecutive quarters of profit when he left. But he is very proud about his work at Pyramid Technology. It was a small company with $100 million or so in revenue, but it hit a wall after about a year.

"When I joined the company, we were one payroll away from running out of cash," Chen said.

He turned it around, grew the business and sold it to Siemens for a healthy profit. "That is the closest to death that I have seen," Chen said.

BlackBerry was the biggest employer in Waterloo Region in 2011 with a workforce of 11,000. When the staff cuts finished in June 2014, the company employed about 2,700 people here. It has since hired a few hundred in some key areas.

Chen made it clear that software, services and security are critical to the future prosperity of the company.

"We are going to make more on software and value-added know-how across every ecosystem, including peoples' phones," Chen said.

During the past year, BlackBerry has purchased three companies to help it bolster its already-vaunted security in voice, data and file-sharing. BlackBerry spends $30 million a year in that area.

While the company's stock increased significantly since Chen took over, many analysts remain skeptical, waiting for real revenue growth in software and services.

"Not long ago, the company was in deep, deep trouble," Chen said. "We are now out of financial trouble, but we have not established the growth."

Until that happens, securing new customers and growing revenue will be a challenge. There are hopeful signs, though � 2,200 new enterprise customers signed on for BlackBerry software in the last quarter.

"But still a lot are sitting on the sidelines, looking at us," Chen said. "And when we were in trouble, a lot of our competitors went into those accounts, and so we need to recapture those."

The company is working on that, but that won't happen overnight.

"We need to tell people BlackBerry not only has a strategy, but it is no longer in trouble," Chen said. "And the sooner that message gets out and registers, the sooner we will return to growth."

BlackBerry is working on new phones that will be released later this year because handsets can still be good business. But they can no longer be the company's main focus, Chen said.

The cost structure of the handset business has to change, he said.

"I mean this whole cost structure is really huge," Chen said. "We are working really hard on that. We have to be sure we make money, otherwise we can't stay in the device business. But I am hopeful we will be able to do it."

When asked what advice he has for business leaders and entrepreneurs, Chen said the fortunes of companies rise and fall. That has happened with IBM, Apple and Intel.

"The best-run businesses can withstand down time," Chen said. "Every company goes up and down. The fact that you are down does not mean you are out."

Chen also commented on the global economy. The world economy is not growing, the jobs being created in the U.S. can not sustain middle-class spending, low commodity prices have dampened the Canadian economy and the only reason there is no panic is because interest rates are low, he said.

"There is nowhere for us to put the money except the stock market," Chen said. "Everybody sees the stock price go up, they feel happy. But they shouldn't feel happy because fundamentally we have some kind of problem that might be coming.

"Hopefully, it is a soft landing. I am not an economist," Chen said. "I would prepare for some storms."



Posted via CB10

Wow, based on this coverage, I actually think this is the most personal and heartfelt Chen 'turnaround' speech yet. I'm from K-W, so biased, but when he talks about the turnaround of BlackBerry in the context of a peak of 11,000 local employees versus 2,200 today, to this local crowd, you know that people are listening. And if you're from there, you know that people aren't judging the past, but in their heads they ARE measuring the mathematical likelihood of the future vision he's selling wrt IoT, potential for software Rev growth, etc etc, and yes its a crowd that doesn't buy into the California bullsh**t even a little bit (unless it's about securing VC $ of course). I know that Watsa 'gets' this crowd, but now I believe that Chen does too. His comments about how gov policy can help are going to hold weight. His comments about shifting away from device mentality are going to hold weight. This marks the nadir of the old vs new. Let's get it going, and show what BlackBerry can really become!

Posted via CB10

[world traveler and former ceo]

Wow, based on this coverage, I actually think this is the most personal and heartfelt Chen 'turnaround' speech yet. I'm from K-W, so biased, but when he talks about the turnaround of BlackBerry in the context of a peak of 11,000 local employees versus 2,200 today, to this local crowd, you know that people are listening. And if you're from there, you know that people aren't judging the past, but in their heads they ARE measuring the mathematical likelihood of the future vision he's selling wrt IoT, potential for software Rev growth, etc etc, and yes its a crowd that doesn't buy into the California bullsh**t even a little bit (unless it's about securing VC $ of course). I know that Watsa 'gets' this crowd, but now I believe that Chen does too. His comments about how gov policy can help are going to hold weight. His comments about shifting away from device mentality are going to hold weight. This marks the nadir of the old vs new. Let's get it going, and show what BlackBerry can really become!

Posted via CB10

+1 yeah.

... as a Computer Science graduate of University of Waterloo I have strong history there also... I established one of the largest scholarships there....

Waterloo is Silicon Valley North... many of Canada's tech startups originated there and I would love nothing more than a rebirth of BlackBerry and the return of that iconic Brand... and the spinoff benefits for that region, and the university of Waterloo Computer science and Engineering faculties, in particular.

CEO Chen has my confidence that, over time, the right moves are being made....

Was impressed by his focus and candor... Devices still part of the Solution going forward, but software and services will be the bread and butter moving ahead.

Company had stabilized and is generating cash, but now must begin to show revenue growth.... for investors and consumers to gain confidence.

Amen!

Posted via CB10

[world traveler and former ceo]

I believe BlackBerry earlier stated by end of this calendar year. 4 devices by end of fiscal year. So slider by end of 2015 and 2 new in early 2016.

Posted via CB10

Yes... so the two new devices in early 2016?
1) Porsche Design Passport and 2)???

Posted via CB10

[awindsr]

Wow, based on this coverage, I actually think this is the most personal and heartfelt Chen 'turnaround' speech yet. I'm from K-W, so biased, but when he talks about the turnaround of BlackBerry in the context of a peak of 11,000 local employees versus 2,200 today, to this local crowd, you know that people are listening. And if you're from there, you know that people aren't judging the past, but in their heads they ARE measuring the mathematical likelihood of the future vision he's selling wrt IoT, potential for software Rev growth, etc etc, and yes its a crowd that doesn't buy into the California bullsh**t even a little bit (unless it's about securing VC $ of course). I know that Watsa 'gets' this crowd, but now I believe that Chen does too. His comments about how gov policy can help are going to hold weight. His comments about shifting away from device mentality are going to hold weight. This marks the nadir of the old vs new. Let's get it going, and show what BlackBerry can really become!

Posted via CB10

This certainly highlights the challenge Chen faces within and it's importance in BlackBerrys overall success.
I have a deeper appreciation for the complexity this man has been tasked with.
He can't win the external battles without first inspiring from within and changing perceptions.
Watsa recruited the right individual to champion the company's tumultuous path to rebirth.

Posted via CB10

[awindsr]

CBC chimes in.

http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/canada/kitc...help-1.3062345



BlackBerry CEO John Chen says company's reputation needs help

BlackBerry CEO John Chen says the Waterloo, Ont.-based smartphone maker needs help shedding its image as a*troubled company,*adding*that finances have stabilized since he took charge 18 months ago.

"One of the biggest things that I'm working and struggling with, that everybody here could help with, is our reputation," said Chen to a crowd of 400 people in Kitchener*at an event hosted by the Greater Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday.

"Not long ago, the company was in deep deep trouble. We are now out of trouble in terms of financial, but we haven't established a growth�until that happens nobody will go willingly buy our products."

In its last quarterly report posted at the end of March, the company surprised with a profit of $28 million US, though it also saw a large drop-off in the actual number of sales. Revenues dropped 33 per cent to $660 million US, compared to the same quarter in the previous year at $976 million US.

Chen, known as a turnaround specialist, was brought in November of 2013, shortly after a buyout with Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. fell through and the company had posted a quarter loss of nearly $1 billion*US.

On Tuesday, Chen urged the crowd to promote BlackBerry as much as possible, which he admitted had taken serious blows over the past five years.

"The reason I said everybody could help is, you need to tell people that BlackBerry not only has a strategy, it's no longer a troubled company. The sooner that message gets out and registers, the sooner we'll return to growth," said Chen.

But Chen did not need to try hard to convince the audience, many of whom witnessed the local tech boom led*BlackBerry, then known as Research In Motion, back in 1999. Waterloo Region is now home to hundreds of*startups that*are bolstered by tech incubators and young talent coming out of the region's two universities.

"I think I was aware that that reputation had suffered a lot in the last number of years, but I think with Mr. Chen at the helm that there's a lot of hope," said John Weir from McCarter Grespan Baynon Weir Lawyers, which was the event's platinum sponsor.

"I'm a fan, I'm a big fan of BlackBerry, always have been and continue to be," said Paul Eichinger, chair of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce board of directors and vice president of MTE Consultants.

"I think John Chen, I believe, told us and showed us how BlackBerry is renewing itself as a company and is well on its way towards success, and if BlackBerry continues on that path and is successful, than this whole region's going to be successful."



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