BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) hit a bit of a snag (one of many, anyway) when Canada’s largest mobile carrier decided to not to sell its Z30 handset. However, Rogers Communications has apparently decided to change its tune.
Reporting on The New York Times’ Bits blog, Ian Austen reports that the carrier has decided to begin offering the BlackBerry Z30 via online order.
Rogers and BlackBerry
Rogers has had a long relationship with BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB), so when the carrier announced it would not support the Z30, it was a bit of a surprise and a major blow for the struggling Canadian company. Users of social media blasted the carrier for not supporting BlackBerry, which even tested some of its earliest devices on Rogers’ network.
At this point it isn’t clear whether Canadians will be able to walk into one of Rogers’ retail locations and find the BlackBerry Z30 on the shelves or if they will have to order it online. A spokesperson for Rogers told The New York Times that “the devices are still being certified” and that they haven’t worked out all of the details yet, including whether or not the Z30 will be available in retail stores.
BlackBerry Z30 on other carriers
Bell Canada and Telus, the other two major mobile carriers in Canada, expect to begin selling the BlackBerry Z30 next week.
In the U.S., BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) is also hitting a problem with carriers not wanting to support its unpopular devices. T-Mobile USA said it would stop selling the company’s smartphones because sales were poor. The carrier is still selling them online, however. This could suggest that Rogers Communications will follow suit—at least until it determines whether or not the Z30 is popular enough on BlackBerry’s home turf to actually ship the devices to its stores.
BlackBerry’s phones are still available in stores at U.S. carriers AT&T and Verizon.
