BlackBerry Ltd has signed an agreement that gives Chinese manufacturer TCL Corp the right to use its brand on future phones and sell them around the world.
This is BlackBerry’s first licensing deal since the Canadian phone makers announced their transition from a smartphone company into a software company.
TCL, which provides hardware for brands like Alcatel, will now be coupled with BlackBerry’s security software and service suite, the company said on Thursday.
Reuters reported that BlackBerry hopes this deal will help it regain the ground it lost to its rivals – Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd – in the smartphone market.
Earlier this year, BlackBerry announced plans to outsource the development of its smartphones, and a month later launched its last mobile device – the Android-based DTEK60, which was made under an agreement with TCL.
The new agreement will give TCL the right to make and sell BlackBerry-branded smartphones in all countries except India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia – some of BlackBerry's biggest handset markets.
In September, BlackBerry signed a deal with Indonesia's BB Merah Putih and gave them the rights to make and sell new devices in the country.
BlackBerry's revenue from software and services was $156 million in its latest quarter, down from $166 million in the prior quarter, Reuters said.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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