Another quarter of disappointing results for Canadian Blackberry-maker Research in Motion (RIMM) has the company’s new CEO finally considering what his predecessors would not: a sale of the company. New CEO Thorsten Heins wrote in the company’s 4th quarter earnings release that he will undertake a “comprehensive review of strategic opportunities including partnerships and joint ventures, licensing, and other ways to leverage RIM’s assets and maximize value for our stakeholders.” Later in a conference call with analysts Heins was asked if that could include a sale of the company, and he reportedly said that if the option came up “we would consider it.”
(Photo: Thorsten Heins. Courtesy Jim Moczulski, Canadian Business)
RIM lost $125 million dollars in its fourth quarter, as sales declined to $4.2 billion, down 19% from the previous quarter and down 25% from the year-ago quarter. RIM said it would write off $267 million worth of unsold BlackBerry 7 models, and return to its roots by focusing on corporate customers rather than trying to crack the consumer market.
After again falling short of its own projections, RIM said it would said it would stop offering financial guidance to investors ahead of earnings releases. The company also said that Jim Balsillie, its former co-CEO and chairman (with founder Mike Lazaridis) would resign from the board after 20 years with the company he helped build. The BlackBerry smartphone was once an ubiquitous corporate status symbol, and the company continues to be a source of pride for Canada, as well as a major employer. This could potentially create regulatory hurdles to a sale since this would probably move control of RIM outside of Canada.
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