Editor’s Note: BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)
BlackBerry’s biggest shareholder said to be looking at buyout of troubled business (The Guardian)
BlackBerry’s biggest shareholder has approached several large Canadian investment funds about forging a deal to take the smartphone maker private, but the proposal is still “an airy-fairy, ‘what if’ kind of thing,” according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. The shareholder, Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd, has a 10% stake, and its chairman and chief executive, Prem Watsa, has left BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)’s board already to avoid any possible conflict of interest as the company assesses its strategic options. The source, who declined to be identified because the still-preliminary talks are private, said that in addition to Watsa’s Fairfax there had been an early and informal approach about a possible deal from another investor.
BlackBerry said to ax dozens of jobs from US sales force (CNET)
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) laid off dozens of people from it US sales force on Monday in another wave of layoffs at the embattled handset maker, according to published reports. The company laid off more than half its sales force on Monday, a source described as close to the matter told Canadian technology blog Cantech Letter, describing the company’s consumer sales force as “gone” and the enterprise as “gutted.” The Wall Street Journal separately reported that several dozen sales employees had been laid off Monday as part of BlackBerry’s ongoing restructuring, citing people familiar with the matter.
Blackberry Gets a Customized Look – Case Monkey Unveils Customizable Snap-on Cases for Blackberry Bold, Curve and Z10 (Virtual-Strategy Magazine)
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) users can now make their beloved mobile devices a little bit more fun with customizable cases from Case Monkey. The company has launched a new line of four Blackberry cases for the Bold, Curve and Z10 models. Already popular amongst iPhone, iPad and Samsung Galaxy users, the snap-on cases from Case Monkey can be customized with any photos, logos, artwork, text and colors the customer chooses. Designing a custom case can be done in just a few minutes. Customers follow the easy steps in the designer app and can save unlimited designs for free. The designs can also be shared by e-mail and on Facebook and Twitter.
BlackBerry stocks get 6% boost as talk of potential sale heats up (Canadian Manufacturing)
Shares in BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) soared almost six per cent after unconfirmed reports surfaced that the troubled smartphone maker has found a couple of homegrown buyers for its assets. On the Toronto Stock Exchange, BlackBerry stock closed up 67 cents at $11.96 on volume of more than 4.2 million shares, well above its daily average of less than 2.9 million. The big move in the shares of the Waterloo, Ont.-based company came amid unconfirmed reports that Fairfax Financial Holdings chairman Prem Watsa is closing in on a rescue deal for BlackBerry.
BlackBerry gets a boost (CNBC.com)
