Tag: blackberry strategy

BlackBerry has clawed its way out of death’s door

| March 27, 2014

That said, the company is still in critical care as it continues to battle to break even in its cash flow.

Investors have turned their eyes back on BlackBerry Ltd., once more, as the company’s strategies for cutting costs and preserving funds have led it to actually report a solid balance sheet in its fourth quarter earnings, which were released in recent news.

This will help to give the company the time that it needs to be able to attempt to turn its situation around.

BlackBerry brought itself about as close to death as a company can. However, now that it has broken through the other side of that experience, it is now working on the “specifics of charting a course to promised cash flow break-even by the fiscal first quarter.” This technology news is according to RBC Capital Markets analyst, Mark Sue.

Sue pointed out that liquidity is no longer one of BlackBerry’s largest risks within the near future.

He pointed out that the reason that liquidity isn’t among the struggles that the company will face in the near future is because of the tax refunds that it will receive, this quarter, which are expected to total approximately $500 million (U.S.). Moreover, it will receive an additional $300 to $400 million in tax refunds due to its recent sales in real estate. The result will be an additional $2.2 billion in net cash.Mobile Commerce - Blackberry Technology News

Sue’s belief is that if it is possible for the transition between the mobile devices manufacturer and Foxconn Technology Group’s production to increase the blended gross margins of the company could make it into the mid to high thirties, then it should also be possible for the cash flow of that handset maker to reach the break even point, which is an estimated $600 million for its standard operations.

The RBC Capital Markets analyst explained that “Should service revenue attrition continue or if Foxconn smartphone demand doesn’t improve, BlackBerry will need to cut more open.” He underscored the importance of the enterprise business stability at the company, which would represent an enterprise subscribership of an estimated 15 to 20 million, which would mean between five and seven million shipments of handsets each year, on top of service revenues of $1.6 billion.

Technology news at BlackBerry involves sale of Canadian real estate

| March 25, 2014

The dwindling smartphone manufacturer will still hold onto its Waterloo headquarters.

BlackBerry Ltd. is once again making technology news, but this time it has to do with selling off the majority of its Canadian real estate as opposed to releasing a new mobile device somewhere in the world.

There is a great deal of vacant land being sold off in a new deal reached by the company.

According to the latest technology news update from BlackBerry at the time of the writing of this article, it had landed a deal that would sell off over 3 million square feet of space and vacant lands. The entire purpose is to help the company to be able to raise a significant amount of capital.

This technology news could put cash back into the hands in the money bleeding smartphone manufacturer.

Once the company has sold off the space, it will lease some of it back again, said BlackBerry on Friday. According to the company in a release that announced this deal, this strategy to sell off the land “is part of BlackBerry’s ongoing program to improve operational efficiencies, optimize resource usage and shift resources.”Technology News - BlackBerry Canada

The intentions for this deal had first been announced by BlackBerry in January, and it is now expending that the deal will close by the first quarter of fiscal 2015. This decision comes on the heels of massive cutbacks by the company. At last tally, there were more than 4,600 jobs slashed away as the manufacturer of mobile devices tries to claw its way back up through the billions of dollars lost throughout 2013.

The executive chair and CEO of BlackBerry, John Chen explained that by successfully selling this Canadian property, it will “help us move toward our goal of continued operational efficiency.” In his technology news statement, he went on to add that the company is maintaining its commitment to holding a strong presence within Canada, and its global headquarters will remain, as ever, in the city of Waterloo. That location is not a part of the deal that is selling off the land belonging to the company.