BlackBerry has formed a ‘Special Committee to explore strategic alternatives,’ for the company. The Canadian smartphone maker specifically cites a few possible options including a sale of the company, ‘joint ventures, strategic partnerships or alliances,’ and ‘other possible transactions.’
The thrust of the message is as clear as BlackBerry’s previous statements on the subject – it’s not ruling out a sale, but it is looking at all other possible options first. The company said it was seeking strategic alternatives to ‘enhance value and increase scale in order to accelerate BlackBerry 10 deployment.’
In the recent past, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins has dropped a few hints that the company would consider licensing the BlackBerry 10 operating system to third-party OEMs, in a similar model to how Google pushes Android to phone makers.
In the new statement, Heins reiterated BlackBerry’s position in the market, ‘We continue to see compelling long-term opportunities for BlackBerry 10, we have exceptional technology that customers are embracing, we have a strong balance sheet and we are pleased with the progress that has been made in our transition.
‘As the Special Committee focuses on exploring alternatives, we will be continuing with our strategy of reducing cost, driving efficiency and accelerating the deployment of BES 10, as well as driving adoption of BlackBerry 10 smartphones, launching the multi-platform BBM social messaging service, and pursuing mobile computing opportunities by leveraging the secure and reliable BlackBerry Global Data Network,’ he added.
BlackBerry confirmed in its closing statement that a sale was by no means definite at this point, ‘There can be no assurance that this exploration process will result in any transaction. The Company does not currently intend to disclose further developments with respect to this process, unless and until its Board of Directors approves a specific transaction or otherwise concludes the review of strategic alternatives.’
In other words, watch this space.
by pbriden via Featured Articles
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