BlackBerry gets 1 mln BB10 phones order from an ‘established partner’
The company did not reveal the name, but said the customer was indeed one of its 'established partners'. Needless to specify, this is not an individual wanting to buy 1mln smartphones, but a corporation that wants to upgrade its employees phones.
BlackBerry has said that one of its “established partners” has placed an order for 1 million BlackBerry 10 devices. Without naming the company, the Canadian smartphone maker said that this is the single largest order in the company’s history. The order, according to BlackBerry, is for both the Z10 and the Q10, but no further detail were revealed.
“An order for one million devices is a tremendous vote of confidence in BlackBerry 10,” said Rick Costanzo, EVP Global Sales, BlackBerry. “Consumers are ready for a new user experience, and BlackBerry 10 delivers. With strong partner support, coupled with this truly re-invented new platform, we have a powerful recipe for success.”
The company refuses to name who the partner is, but this is surely a big boost for BlackBerry. The new BlackBerry 10 operating system and the new smartphone, the Z10, were announced in late January 2013. The BlackBerry Q10 is expected to hit markets in a few weeks as well. The company is desperate for BB10 phones to do well, after falling behind in the smartphone market to the likes of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android.
BlackBerry’s shares jumped 8.2 percent, to $15.65, at the New York stock exchange, after the announcement. BlackBerry’s stock has already climbed 32 percent this year, after a series of positive developments leading up to the BB10 launch.
Meanwhile, customers in the U.S. will be delighted that Verizon has now started taking preorders for the Z10. This comes not soon after AT&T began the same process a couple of days back. Verizon says that it will start delivering phones from the 28th of this month.
Source: BlackBerry