BlackBerry CEO admits Z10 launch was "probably not" perfect
Following BlackBerry’s disappointing financial results for Q1 2014 (April – June 2013), CEO Thorsten Heins has admitted the launch of the brand’s flagship Z10 smartphone was flawed.
Speaking at the company’s annual shareholder meeting, webcast from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Heins fielded criticisim from one shareholder who referred to the Z10 rollout as “a disaster”.
“Were we perfect at the launch?” responded Heins responded.
“Probably not. Was it a disaster? I don’t think so.”
Despite 6.8 million smartphones being sold over the quarter, with 2.7 million sales of BlackBerry 10 handsets the Z10 and Q10, BlackBerry still posted a loss for the quarter, suffering an $84 million loss. Analysts had hoped for the re-invigorated brand to sell some 1 million further handsets than the figure they achieved. Revenues however are up 15% year-on-year, rising to $3.1 billion.
BlackBerry shares now sit 30% lower than prior to the earnings call, with BlackBerry holding just 2.9% of the market share, massively behind Google’s market leader Android at 75%.
