Blackberry continues its transition to software only company with purchase of rival company, Good Technology
Blackberry is set to acquire rival mobile software firm Good Technology for $425 million as the company looks to boost its ability to offer its software to multiple operating systems.
The move continues Blackberry’s transition towards a software company after years of losing out heavily to Apple and Samsung in the phone hardware realm.
Blackberry has said that they expect to realise about $160m in revenue from the acquisition in the first year once the deal closes.
The two companies have shared tense relations in recent times, most notably in January in relation to a Good Technology press release for a new system that would make it possible to measure a smartphone user's personal and business data usage. Blackberry took a confrontational advertising approach and posted an annotated version of the release with red ink, questioning its novelty and promoting its own, competing service.
In an interview recently posted on Blackberry’s website Good Chief Executive, Christy Wyatt, said that the two companies existed in an “incredibly competitive market and speak to many of the same customers. What has been clear throughout has been that Good and BlackBerry share similar philosophies".
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Bank of America Merrill Lynch advised Good Technologies on the deal which, according to Blackberry, is expected to be finalised late in its fiscal quarter which runs up until the end of November.