BlackPhone (a.k.a. BlackBerry killer) is an EPIC FAIL

So, sorry guys if this has been posted already (and if this one is posted in wrong section, Moderators, please feel free to move it to appropriate on).

Basically, you all remember the BLACKPHONE - one, which was super duper secure and basically, had to kill Blackberry?

Nuo ?nipin?jimo apsaugotas i?manusis: pardavimai priblo?k? - DELFI Mokslas - although link is in Lithuanian - I believe you can use the google translate.

however, the main message is:
Although manufacturer has claimed that they got pre-order of 250.000 Phones from operators BigOn, Kumion and America Movil, but when phones were manufactured, BigOn and Kumion cancelled their orders, and America Movil purchased only 6.000 (Six thousand) instead of 100.000 they have initially indicated.

I just wonder, are there any other figures from Black Phone which would indicate the number of total sold devices??

English article along the same lines: Forbes Welcome
Best part:

"“However, with sales lagging far behind even the most conservative estimates, Silent Circle has been forced to attempt to raise additional operating capital so that it can refocus its efforts on its software business and absorb the losses from the hardware operations.

“Silent Circle has revised its business plan to dramatically cut costs and focus on its core software business… in the coming weeks, Silent Circle will be terminating dozens of employees and otherwise reducing its operating costs by around 50 per cent.”

Sound familiar...?

Sadly I think it's a sign that the market is moving towards standard Android and iOS devcies and away from specialty devices that carry a higher cost in equipment and less compatibility. Might be very good for pretty much basic Android on BlackBerry new lower priced devcies... if they are able to bring them to market, and keep them in the market long enough....

Call it a "failure" if you want. But the fact that another competitor (and whatever you say, competition IS good) had an order for 250,000 units and only sold 6000 is terrible.

That's a lot of people who are going to lose their jobs, and another firm that might have to close down.

Blackberry is in the same situation, so not sure why we should be looking down on them.

Posted via a Priv on an 6.0 Mushroom

As mentioned above, it's indicative of the small (and rapidly disappearing) space that Silent Circle and BlackBerry occupy.

The products sounded decent enough.

Posted via CB10

So...no one really need a secure android!


Posted via Q10Bold

Originally Posted by Q10Bold

So...no one really need a secure android!


Posted via Q10Bold

At least not for $800.....The question is do enough need a secure android for $500?

Or is any off the shelf product going to be acceptable with the right EMM software package?

for me, the funniest part was, how they were bashing BBRY...

Originally Posted by yessuz

for me, the funniest part was, how they were bashing BBRY...

I got the distinct impression that it was BlackBerry bashing them.

Posted via CB10

Originally Posted by Deckard79

I got the distinct impression that it was BlackBerry bashing them.

Posted via CB10

Actually Silent Circle came out of the gate hitting hard against BlackBerry.

Chen was gracious and admitted that Blackphone was the only company out there that could claim its security was as good or better than the Priv at initial launch.

Of course with the MM update, Priv has granular permissions, and PIN-protected boot cycle. Blackphone is left behind.

Woohoo. Finally, BlackBerry beating someone....too bad no one has heard of them other than tech geeks.

RedBerry Passport /10.3.2.2876 / Telus

Originally Posted by Deckard79

As mentioned above, it's indicative of the small (and rapidly disappearing) space that Silent Circle and BlackBerry occupy.

This is exactly right - the issue is that there is only a tiny niche of people who "need" this level of security enough to pay extra for it. There is a perception here on CB from some people that there is a sizable market of people who are willing to pay for special, enhanced-security phones, but both BB's sales and BlackPhones sales show that that's not true - there's only a small number of people in this category - in the thousands, not hundreds of thousands, much less millions - per quarter.

Originally Posted by Troy Tiscareno

This is exactly right - the issue is that there is only a tiny niche of people who "need" this level of security enough to pay extra for it. There is a perception here on CB from some people that there is a sizable market of people who are willing to pay for special, enhanced-security phones, but both BB's sales and BlackPhones sales show that that's not true - there's only a small number of people in this category - in the thousands, not hundreds of thousands, much less millions - per quarter.

Agreed. However, this provokes the question: Is it that people, generally speaking, do not care about security of their data or is it that they don't take data security seriously?

Too be honest, I think KNOX is the only one that goings to benefit from any of this. Or maybe Sirin Labs will sell a couple more $15,000 smartphones....

Originally Posted by KemKev

Agreed. However, this provokes the question: Is it that people, generally speaking, do not care about security of their data or is it that they don't take data security seriously?

They just don't believe they are a target themselves. Not a celebrity (iCloud) not a terrorist (Government Lettered Agency). They are right. The typical user won't ever experience catastrophic smartphone malware in their lifetime using Android/IOS devices that get apps from sanctioned app stores from Google/Apple.

Originally Posted by KemKev

Agreed. However, this provokes the question: Is it that people, generally speaking, do not care about security of their data or is it that they don't take data security seriously?

Just because I don't own a automatic weapon and put steel bars over my doors and windows doesn't mean I'm not concerned with personal safety.

If it was common that thieves broke into homes in my area, then that might be the proper response. But just because thieves tend to hit convience stores from time to time, doesn't mean that I have to go to that extreme. I think the average person has a greater data risk from hackers attacking their favorite department store that has their data, than from hackers attacking them personally via a mobile device.

So just as I don't want to carry a gun all the time, I don't want to carry a overly secure but not much fun BB10 phone.

Originally Posted by KemKev

Agreed. However, this provokes the question: Is it that people, generally speaking, do not care about security of their data or is it that they don't take data security seriously?

Most people who are very concerned about security overall likely wouldn't have a smartphone in the first place, or store any kind of sensitive data on it to begin with. Again, we're looking at a very small number of potential customers.

Blackphone was never going to be a Blackberry killer. Android and iPhone already did that.

The surprising thing was that a company looked at what has happened to Blackberry the last several years and thought it was a good idea to replicate it.

Security is not a selling point to Android users. We have two failed cases now :)

Originally Posted by TgeekB

Blackphone was never going to be a Blackberry killer. Android and iPhone already did that.

The surprising thing was that a company looked at what has happened to Blackberry the last several years and thought it was a good idea to replicate it.

Think they saw an opening... and let's be honest back in 2013 it looked like BlackBerry was done for. What were they burning a couple billion dollars a quarter?

What I think no one really expected was that much of BlackBerry's market (80 million users almost), and enterprise in general would be able to use stock iOS or Android. That the security offered via EMM would meet a big percentage of those users needs. The really high end security market just isn't large enough or have enough turn over to support very much business.... heck even today some of these are still stuck on BBOS devcies.

But Silent Circle isn't alone, Boeing has their own Black smartphone, Samsung came out with KNOX and their have been a number of other secure smartphone projects out there that the military has looked at..... Have to wonder if BlackBerry had never shown any weakness, how many of these would never have gotten funding....

Price also helped hammer the nail home, $799US/$1,100CDN for an otherwise dull mid-range device with a brand name hardly anyone's heard of.

Yeah, I'm not a target...! :-D



�   There's a Crack in the Berry right now...   �

Originally Posted by KemKev

Agreed. However, this provokes the question: Is it that people, generally speaking, do not care about security of their data or is it that they don't take data security seriously?

It's neither. The fact is that iPhones and Android phones provide them with all of the security they need.

Why doesn't everyone drive a car that can exceed 180 MPH? Or even go one further: why doesn't everyone who can easily afford a car that exceeds 180 MPH drive one?

A: Because most people don't need that capability, even though it exists. Their current vehicles do everything they need. You could argue that a super-fast car could help them get away from bad guys if they somehow found themselves in a rolling gun-battle, but most people are going to evaluate the risks of that (infinitesimal) vs. the costs and disadvantage, and choose a more mainstream car. Are they wrong? In almost all cases, no, they're right.

Just the same, in almost all cases, the current levels of security on iOS and Android are more than enough for the vast majority of people, and most of the remaining people who do need more security can get it with an EMM package and, again, have all the security they need. Only a very, very tiny number of customers need additional security, and that's certainly not enough to sustain an entire custom OS (BB10). It's far cheaper to modify an existing OS (BlackPhone), but even that requires a good number of sales.

Most non-corporate BB10 buyers didn't buy BB10 because of security; they bought it because they were pre-existing fans of the company or because they liked the interface. And only a handful of these buyers care enough about security to pay significantly more for, say, a BB phone over something else that is somewhat less secure (in theory). A handful isn't enough to justify providing service to when it costs as much as it does to build something as complex as a smartphone.

Originally Posted by Troy Tiscareno

Most non-corporate BB10 buyers didn't buy BB10 because of security; they bought it because they were pre-existing fans of the company or because they liked the interface. And only a handful of these buyers care enough about security to pay significantly more for, say, a BB phone over something else that is somewhat less secure (in theory). A handful isn't enough to justify providing service to when it costs as much as it does to build something as complex as a smartphone.

Exactly, you mentioned an important point. The majority of BlackBerry customers who buy the phones are not in it for the Security but rather because they like the phones. This is why I think BlackBerry should focus on making their phones appealing to the mass market because they'll never get anywhere with the whole security thing.. When BlackBerry was mainstream it was because people liked the phones and found them very productive and appealing.

Originally Posted by Sairos

When BlackBerry was mainstream it was because people liked the phones and found them very productive and appealing.

BlackBerry only became mainstream after they were successful in the enterprise and government market. They were very appealing until the iPhone arrived. Then came Android.