Editor’s Note: Related tickers: BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY), Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO)
Further cuts as BlackBerry lobbies on M&A rules (Rethink-Wireless)
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) may be a firm in its death throes, as it makes further deep cuts and lobbies for foreign takeover laws in Canada to be relaxed. The company was reported last week to have laid off more than half of its salesforce, on both the consumer and enterprise sides. The firm itself said it had laid off a “small number of employees” in the latest round of its long-running cost reduction program.
BlackBerry Messaging service is hot (FinancialExpress)
Ex-Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) veterans launched WhatsApp, the cross-platform mobile messaging app for iPhone, BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY), Android, Windows Phone and Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK). It rapidly grew into prominence because it was free and the network effect with word of mouth publicity ensured that most of the people installed it on their phones. It is based on customised version of the XMPP protocol and uses phone number or IMEI as the user ID. It works through the data networks to share multimedia content. WhatsApp used to send across the messages in plain text, but the latest version claims that it is encrypted without specifying the cryptographic method involved.
Rivals Target BlackBerry Service Business (WSJ)
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) -5.21% isn’t just losing its franchise in smartphones. It also faces tough competition in its business helping firms manage employees’ devices. Highlighting the threat to the area BlackBerry’s Enterprise Server once dominated, rival startups are quickly adding customers and raising more capital, taking advantage of a trend in which employees increasingly bring their own phones to work.
Is Apple Giving BlackBerry Messenger the Cold Shoulder? (WallStCheatSheet)
BlackBerry’s (NASDAQ:BBRY) Messenger app for iOS has been inexplicably stuck in App Store limbo for over two weeks now, reports 9to5Mac. BlackBerry Senior Strategic Account Manager Alex Kinsella noted the unusually long delay in a Tweet several days ago. Although the BBM app for iOS has been in review for over two weeks, 9to5Mac notes that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)‘s App Review Status page still states that 99 percent of submitted apps are approved within five business days. BBM is currently only available for BlackBerry device users.
BlackBerry’s Thorsten Heins faces nightmare scenario with no buyer in sight (FinancialPost)
What’s unfolding for BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) right now might not be Thorsten Heins’ worst nightmare, but it has got to be something close to that. Roughly a month ago, BlackBerry’s chief executive effectively erected a “for sale” sign on the Waterloo, Ont.-based firm’s front lawn when he announced the formation of a special committee to examine the company’s “strategic alternatives” that could include joint ventures, a move to go private or an outright sale.
Tech stocks move Nasdaq higher (CNBC)
Recommended Reading:
BlackBerry Ltd (BBRY): Why Investors Will End Up With a Raspberry
Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s Margins Are Its Undoing
BlackBerry Ltd (BBRY) Highlights: Investors’ Concern, Security Features, BBM Glitch & More
