Tag: blackberry smartphone

BlackBerry licensing agreement formed with TCL Communications

The company no longer manufactures its own smartphones but it is selling its name for branded devices.

TCL Communications entered into a BlackBerry licensing agreement to create and manufacture branded mobile devices. BlackBerry CEO John Chen recently said “BlackBerry is no longer just about the smartphone, but the smart in the phone.”

The goal is to continue the production of branded devices in the market without making them, themselves.

Chen assured customers that “when you see our logo it means security, from our class-leading enterprise software to devices secured by BlackBerry software.”

BlackBerry Licensing Agreement - Business PartnershipThis is not the first time BlackBerry has worked with TCL Communications. In fact, it released two different Android-based smartphones in a partnership with that company. The DTEK 50 and DTEK 60 are both devices resulting from collaborations between the two firms. TCL Communications also manufactures Alcatel-branded smartphones.

The long-term BlackBerry licensing agreement is only the latest in that company’s turnaround strategy.

The partnership is a way for BlackBerry to place some distance between itself and handset manufacturing. The company can turn its focus toward growth as a security software and services company. As a part of this agreement TCL Communications will not only design, manufacture and sell BlackBerry-branded devices. It will also provide customer support for the products they sell.

BlackBerry COO and general manager of mobility solutions, Ralph Pini, said this partnership with TCL Communication is a core move in their strategy. It lets the company put “the ‘smart in the phone’ by providing state-of-the-art security and device software on a platform that mobile users prefer and are comfortable with.”

According to recent media reports, the DTEK 70 will be the next smartphone launched with the BlackBerry licensing brand agreement. This mobile device will be based on Android – as have been the last few models – and will have a fingerprint sensor. That feature will be uniquely positioned in the spacebar of the distinctive physical keyboard. It will have a 2.0 GHz Qualcomm processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage and a 4.5 inch display. The rear-facing camera will be 18 megapixels and the front-facing camera will be 8 megapixels.

BlackBerry keyboard phone soon on its way to launch

Even though the DTEK50 experienced lower sales than predicted, the struggling handset maker isn’t stopping.

The floundering Canadian handset maker has decided it’s time for yet another BlackBerry keyboard phone. This announcement follows closely on the heels of an announcement from the company that misled much of the world into believing there would be no more BlackBerry smartphones. After that announcement brought the brand into the spotlight, it took care to point out that third party manufacturing would continue to make the branded devices.

Handset makers willing to pay to license the company’s brand will soon put out a keyboarded smartphone.

This new BlackBerry keyboard phone will be coming into the market even though the DTEK50’s results were not at all impressive. The DTEK60 was just released through a collaboration between the company and Alcatel, but figures about the success of that device have yet to be produced at the time of the writing of this article.

Blackberry Keyboard Phone - Blackberry KeyboardThat said, when interviewed by Bloomberg, the company’s CEO, John Chen, gave the official confirmation that another BlackBerry smartphone was on the way. “We have one keyboard phone I promised people. It’s coming,” he said.

The official release date of the upcoming BlackBerry keyboard phone was not announced.

Chen said only that it was coming “soon.” Therefore, that could mean that BlackBerry will have a new mobile device on the market during the holiday shopping season.

Another announcement made by Chen during the interview pointed out that there are more companies interested in producing branded smartphones. In fact, he said BlackBerry is currently talking to two different companies about launching smartphones carrying their logo. That said, he did not identify the two companies at the time of their initial mention.

What he did say was that the two companies are based in India and China. He also suggested that the two companies were neck and neck in terms of what they have to offer.

Fans of BlackBerry keyboard phones appear to have some new offerings on the way in the next few months. Despite the fact that the company isn’t making its own mobile devices anymore, other companies seem to be interested in taking over.