BlackBerry Limited (formerly known as Research in Motion, or RIM) announces that it will discontinue designing its own phones. The move is seen by people as the end of the BlackBerry era.
BlackBerry made licensing partnership with an Indonesian-based company to create a new company called "BB Merah Putih". Indonesia is still at the time, BlackBerry's largest market.
BB Merah Putih will source, distribute and promote BlackBerry-branded devices that use the BlackBerry's secured Android software and applications. The Indonesian company will have full access to the BlackBerry experience for production of new devices in the country. The joint venture was created in support of the Indonesian government's efforts to promote the development, manufacturing and creation of locally sourced products, while also increasing the number of value-added LTE smartphones available and sold in the country.
"BlackBerry is no longer just about the smartphone, but the smart in the phone. Working with trusted partners to extend the reach and availability of our secure mobility software remains a key focus for the Mobility Solutions unit and this joint venture is just one of our next steps in making our software licensing strategy successful," said John Chen, Executive Chairman and CEO of BlackBerry. "BB Merah Putih is comprised of companies with extensive background in providing innovative mobile services to their customers, making the newly formed joint venture the perfect partner to offer trusted BlackBerry secure mobile software that is available exclusively to Indonesian customers."
The partnership is led by Tiphone Mobile Indonesia, a leading telecommunication company which is an affiliate of Telkom, the largest carrier in Indonesia.
The partnership also aims to accelerate BlackBerry's focus on software growth, instead of just hardware. Through its Mobility Solutions business unit, BlackBerry will be developing and licensing device software offerings that include security solutions and applications.