BlackBerry ‘No Longer in Turnaround’ as Transition to Software Succeeds, Says CEO

As BlackBerry transitions into a software company, its financials seem to be faring better. BlackBerry Chief Executive John Chen says it will take at least two years to reverse the company’s revenue decline, but no longer considers his company in a turnaround.

“Now we need to execute for growth,” Chen told reporters at BlackBerry’s headquarters.

Revenue for BlackBerry’s third fiscal quarter was $300 million. The company has $1.6 billion in cash.

“BlackBerry is now a software company and the market leader in mobile security,” said Chen. “We achieved significant milestones in Q3, delivering the highest gross margin in the company’s history for the second consecutive quarter and continuing to transform our infrastructure and operations to support an enterprise software business.

With less than 1% global marketshare of smartphones—a sector BlackBerry pioneered at the turn of the millennium—the company was forced to adapt or continue shrinking into oblivion. Under Chen, BlackBerry has shifted its focus to delivering security software to the enterprise.

Shares rose 4% on news of BlackBerry’s third quarter.

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