BlackBerry Could Have a Buyer as Early as November

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blackberry 630 rimmSources tell the Wall Street Journal that BlackBerry (BBRY) is moving quickly to find a buyer. The news sent BlackBerry shares up almost 3% in Thursday morning trading.

The struggling Canadian handset maker has already held initial talks with potential suitors and is compiling a list of potential bidders. However, it remains unclear whether it will receive any formal bids. If the company is sold, its assets will likely be divided between more than one buyer. BlackBerry’s board is hoping to hold a fast auction that could result in a sale by November.

There are a range of potential bidders for BlackBerry’s assets, including tech giants like Taiwan’s Lenovo Group. Other possible buyers include investment firm Bain Capital and the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board.

Microsoft‘s (MSFT) recently announced acquisition of Nokia (NOK) effectively removes it from the list of potential bidders from BlackBerry. That deal is seen as further eroding BlackBerry’s already collapsing market share, making it more urgent for the company’s board to find a potential buyer as quickly as possible.

BlackBerry once ruled the smartphone market, but saw its sales wither under competition from Apple‘s (AAPL) iPhone and smartphones running Google‘s (GOOG) Android operating system. The company had pinned its last hopes on its new BlackBerry 10 operating system, but sales of new phones failed to live up to expectations.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2013/09/blackberry-could-have-a-buyer-as-early-as-november/.

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