Netizens mourn end of BlackBerry's devices era
BlackBerry announced that it will focus on software development as it progress towards profitability.
Netizens took to social media following BlackBerry's announcement that it will no longer make its own devices, and instead will focus on software development.
In a blog post posted on its website, BlackBerry Chief Operating Officer Ralph Pini said the company will now depend on its third party partners to produce the devices.
“This is what the future looks like for our business, and it is the right move as we progress towards profitability.
“This will enable our resources to focus all efforts on providing state-of-the-art security software for devices and the enterprise of things, as well as work on other critical areas of the company,” he said.
The hashtag #RIPBlackBerry is trending, with many saying that this is the end of an era.
In other developments, Pini said, Indonesia has been chosen as the first market for its device software licensing.
“Historically Indonesia is BlackBerry’s largest market for devices and, by far, the most substantial for the BBM messaging software we created.
“BB Merah Putih is a newly-formed joint venture, created in support of the Indonesian government’s efforts to promote the development, manufacturing and creation of locally-sourced products while increasing the number of value-added LTE smartphones available and sold in the country,” he said.
Around a decade ago, BlackBerry was the leading smartphone maker known for its QWERTY keypad.
However, it fell short in recent years trying to compete with brands like Apple and Samsung.
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