Share

T-Mobile to stop selling BlackBerrys in US

Ottawa - Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry says it will not renew an accord allowing wireless carrier T-Mobile to sell its smart phones in the United States.

When the current license expires on 25 April, T-Mobile, a unit of Deutsche Telekom and the fourth-largest wireless carrier in the United States, will no longer offer BlackBerry phones on its US network.

The two companies' strategies are no longer complementary, although BlackBerry hopes to work with T-Mobile again once their commercial strategies are back in sync, said CEO John Chen.

The end of the contract will have no effect on current users of BlackBerrys on the T-Mobile network.

Customers

BlackBerry said it would continue to provide support to existing T-Mobile BlackBerry users and to anyone who might buy a BlackBerry smart phone from T-Mobile's remaining inventory.

BlackBerry's share price on the NASDAQ stock exchange, meanwhile, edged up less than 1% in morning trading to $8.17, following the announcement.

The split between the two companies comes after an "outraged" Chen six weeks ago publicly chided T-Mobile for coaxing its customers to switch from BlackBerry to Apple's newest iPhone in a promotion described by T-Mobile as a "great offer for BlackBerry users."

Chen said in a blog post that he was puzzled why longtime business partner T-Mobile had not spoken to BlackBerry "before or after they launched this clearly inappropriate and ill-conceived marketing promotion."

Loyal BlackBerry users also expressed their displeasure with T-Mobile, which apologised.

Android

The Canadian manufacturer pioneered the smart phone market but has struggled to keep up with competitors in recent years.

The company last year introduced the BlackBerry 10 operating system and new smart phones in an effort to regain ground lost to rivals such as Apple and others using the Google Android operating system.

BlackBerry in December unveiled a manufacturing partnership with Taiwan-based Foxconn and a revamped organisational structure. The deal transfers to Foxconn the manufacturer and inventory management and allows BlackBerry to focus on software and services.

But it has continued to lose money, last week posting new losses of $5.9bn for the period ending 2 March.



We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.88
+0.3%
Rand - Pound
23.86
+0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.39
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.33
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders