BlackBerry ‘Very Bullish’ on IoT Implications of QNX Operating System, CEO Says

BlackBerry “remains very bullish” on the IoT implications of QNX, the software operating system it bought from Harman International in 2010 (see 1004130093), CEO John Chen said on a Friday earnings call. “We're winning a lot of designs” with QNX, Chen said. “You will see a rollout of demonstrations of new technology as well as rollout of product at CES” using QNX, he said. BlackBerry booked exhibit space on the main CES floor in North Hall and also at the Tech West facility in the Sands Expo Center. By the end of February, the Priv, BlackBerry’s first Android smartphone (see Ref:[1509270001]), will be available in 31 countries, versus four at the end of Q3 ended Nov. 30, Chen said. The Priv launched Nov. 6 in North America, with AT&T having U.S. exclusivity in the U.S. market for 60 days, Chen said. “Although it's early, with less than a month of Priv sales in Q3, we're seeing positive feedback and good demand thus far,” he said. The early Priv sales have been “obviously dominated by BlackBerry customers, but we're seeing some other Android customers” adopt the device, as well as “a small percentage” of iPhone users, he said.