BlackBerry will reportedly cut up to 40% of its workforce
More bad news for BlackBerry (at this point, is there any other kind?): The Canadian smartphone maker will reportedly lay off up to 40% of its workforce by the end of the year.
This coming from the Wall Street Journal, which cited unnamed sources “familiar with the matter†saying the cuts would be in all departments and occur in waves, “likely affecting several thousand employees.â€
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We called BlackBerry for comment and got the following statement: “We will not comment on rumors and speculation. As previously stated, we are in the second phase of our transformation plan. Organizational moves will continue to occur to ensure we have the right people in the right roles to drive new opportunities in mobile computing.â€
BlackBerry reported that it had 12,700 employees in March.
In its most recent quarter, BlackBerry reported a loss of $84 million, or 16 cents a share, on revenue of $3.1 billion. Adjusted for one-time events, BlackBerry lost $67 million, or 13 cents.
On Wednesday, BlackBerry unveiled its newest smartphone, the 5-inch Z30. The phone has up to 25 hours of battery life and will be released in the U.S. sometime during the holiday season, though a specific date hasn’t been set.
The phone is intended to compete with Apple’s iPhone 5s and Samsung’s S 4. But already, many tech analysts and industry watchers are skeptical that the phone will catch on with consumers.
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