BlackBerry chief operating officer Marty Beard is pictured in Toronto on Thursday, March 2, 2017. Mr. Beard says the former smartphone leader's shift to being a software company is complete, but branding itself as a software player remains challenging.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
BlackBerry Ltd.'s shift from smartphone maker to software company is complete, but branding remains challenging for the company with a legacy in hardware design, says one of its top executives.
Chief operating officer Marty Beard said that while the technology firm is "100 per cent complete" in its transformation, changing perceptions about BlackBerry remains an obstacle.
"You've got decades, literally, of a brand associated primarily with smartphones – we created that space," Mr. Beard said Thursday, responding to an interview question concerning the company's greatest challenge.
All that remains of its former empire is some of its newest smartphone devices, including the DTEK50 and DTEK60, which it continues to sell until inventory runs out.
The Waterloo, Ont.-based firm announced last September that it would stop making phones after struggling with profitability as Apple Inc. and others dominated the market, and would instead focus on its growing software business.
Mr. Beard said BlackBerry's efforts now centre on connectivity, and securing all the devices consumers and businesses hook up to their Internet network, such as cellphones, tablets and wearables.
One burgeoning market the company feels poised to capture is self-driving vehicles.
Currently, its QNX software – basically, an operating system for a car's applications, such as its acoustics and infotainment system – operates in more than 60 million vehicles. Last December, that division opened a research centre for autonomous cars in Ottawa where developers are working to create secure software.
Security is a huge concern for the industry, said Mr. Beard, pointing to the potential for hackers to remotely take control of a self-driving vehicle.
"Obviously that's a life or death situation," he said. "Security becomes just paramount."
Mr. Beard believes BlackBerry's reputation for developing secure software positions the company as a leader in that space – and the company has had to amp up their marketing efforts to get the word out.
The key is being consistent and clear about the new BlackBerry, he said, though that becomes complicated when a new BlackBerry-branded smartphone is released, such as last weekend.
Last Saturday, TCL Communication Technology Holdings Ltd. (TCT) revealed the KEYone, a new phone under a partnership with BlackBerry. The deal allows TCT to design, manufacture and sell BlackBerry-branded cellphones that use the technology firm's software.
BlackBerry receives a commission for each phone sold, Mr. Beard said, so it wants the device to be phenomenally successful. But it's a brand challenge to ensure everyone understands BlackBerry only makes the software inside the phone, rather than the phone itself, he added.
Despite this, the company is clearly excited about its new direction.
"It's sort of the first inning of the baseball game," Mr. Beard said of the growing connectivity trend BlackBerry intends to capitalize on.