BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) CEO John Chen said in an interview with Bloomberg Television that he likes the company’s old name Research In Motion “a lot better.” Chen’s predecessor Thorsten Heins changed that name to BlackBerry last year to bolster the brand. Don’t worry, Chen isn’t going to switch to the old name. He said he has never given a moment of thought to changing names.
BlackBerry CEO holds talks with the White House
Chen confirmed that he held talks with the White House to make sure that President Obama and other members continue to use their BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) devices. Since being named as CEO of the Canadian company in November last year, he has talked to or met over 100 clients. The U.S. government issues BlackBerrys to White House staff members.
John Chen is trying to boost BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB)’s user base in government and businesses. They rely on the company’s sophisticated encryption technology. He reduced the company’s risk of unsold inventory by joining hands with Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Co., Ltd. (TPE:2354) to design, produce and distribute BlackBerry devices. Last month, BlackBerry launched two new devices at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The Z3 is a sub-$200 device that will be released in Indonesia next month. The Q20 will hit the markets in September or October. Chen calls Q20 the Classis because it brings back the keypad dropped from recent devices.
Chen focused on growing BlackBerry’s server business
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) CEO added that he is trying to bridge the two worlds of old and new BlackBerrys. He said the company is working on a user interface that has modern technology, but that the old user base is fully comfortable with it. BlackBerry shares have surged more than 55% since he took the helm. Chen’s other priorities include bringing the server business back to growth, and expanding the BBM business. Recently, he also introduced a more secure version of BBM.
BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) stock rose 0.40% to $10.08 at 10:16 AM EST.
