Blackberry tried to use Google’s Android OS to generate interest, but it finally threw in the towel on Wednesday to shut down its phone business. The company will now rely on others to build, design and sell the devices in order to save on capital. In a statement released on Wednesday, CEO John Chen said:
The company plans to end all internal hardware development and will outsource that function to partners.
In addition, Blackberry has started shifting its focus to software and services. In the earlier days of mobile phones, Blackberry was the device to have. It was common for high-powered executives to tout their Blackberry phones.
In the early-to-mid-2000s, it was so popular, it was nicknamed the “CrackBerry.” Sadly, Blackberry failed to predict the rise of Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android phones.
According to Gartner, Blackberry claimed only 0.1 percent of the market in the second quarter–this is around 400,400 units sold. In November of last year, it released its first Android-powered device called the Priv. During that time, Chen said the company would need to see 5 million phones a year to stay in the consumer hardware business. He later lowered that number to 3 million. On the other hand, Chen said the company is on track to deliver 30 percent revenue growth in software and services for the full fiscal year.
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