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Handset future in doubt, BlackBerry dumps keyboard
TORONTO: BlackBerry said on Tuesday it will stop making its Classic model, the last of its models with a physical keyboard, raising further doubts about the future
TORONTO: BlackBerry said on Tuesday it will stop making its Classic model, the last of its models with a physical keyboard, raising further doubts about the future of the smartphone pioneer’s money-losing handset business as the company shifts its focus to software.
BlackBerry’s stock fell more than 4% after an executive confirmed the move in a blog post. BlackBerry launched the Classic less than two years ago, hoping it would resonate with customers yearning for a physical keyboard in a world of touchscreens.
“Clearly the Classic was not sufficiently retro-cool to attract new users,” said John Jackson, a technology analyst at International Data Corp .“This marks the end of an era that actually ended several years ago for all but a very small number of devotees.”
The Classic, similar in design to its predecessor Bold, is powered by the overhauled BlackBerry 10 operating system, which failed to re gain market share lost to Apple’s iPhone and others.
BlackBerry has since launched a phone powered by the dominant Android software and plans several more.
BlackBerry chief executive John Chen last month expressed confidence the company’ s handset business can turn a profit by a self-imposed September deadline, even as some analysts urge the company to ditch the unit.
The decision to end production of the Classic adds pressure on BlackBerry to exit hand sets, said Morning star analyst Brian Colello. Without a hit mid-range, BlackBerry likely will not be able to keep its handsets business going or sell it, he said.
Separately, an internal US Senate memo sent by IT staff and seen by Reuters on Tuesday said BlackBerry had told major US carriers Verizon and AT&T that all of its devices running BlackBerry 10 had been discontinued, including the Passport, with a physical keyboard, and the Z10 and Z30 touchscreen models.
President Barack Obama, the most celebrated US political BlackBerry user, said on TV last month he had finally given up his BlackBerry, replacing it with an unnamed smartphone.
