Just a day after an open letter published in some 30 newspapers asked BlackBerry customers to stick with it, KPMG Italy has ordered 3,500 BlackBerry 10 devices and announced plans to migrate to BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10. KPMG is one of the world’s largest professional services companies and has long been a BlackBerry customer. The purchase will go to upgrade their entire mobile fleet in Italy.
“Every day our professionals need to share confidential information and need a reliable smartphone with strong security, and the flexibility to meet different working needs,” said Davide Grassano, IT Lead Partner at KPMG Milan. “With BlackBerry 10 we have found the best solution in terms of usability, security, connectivity and price. The BlackBerry solution allows our users to have access to shared files and other internal resources, while also working to prevent the accidental leakage of business documents and attachments.”
Needless to say, this will be welcome news for BlackBerry which is trying to turn its fortunes around. The company is currently shopping itself around and has a potential bid from Fairfax Financial that would see the company go private in a US$4.7 billion deal. Other potential suitors include company co-founders, Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin as well as companies such as Google, Cisco and SAP.
KPMG Buys 3,500 BlackBerry 10 Smartphones and Migrates to BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10
Milan, Italy – October 16th 2013 – BlackBerry® (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB) today announced that KPMG in Italy has purchased 3,500 new BlackBerry® 10 smartphones and is migrating to BlackBerry’s new Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solution, BlackBerry® Enterprise Service 10.
BlackBerry 10 is the platform of choice for long time customer KPMG – one of the leading international consulting firms – which decided to upgrade their entire mobile fleet in Italy. KPMG professionals will be able to work and share information securely with their customers and colleagues, while also being able to enjoy personal apps and a rich consumer experience on the same smartphone.
“Every day our professionals need to share confidential information and need a reliable smartphone with strong security, and the flexibility to meet different working needs,” said Davide Grassano, IT Lead Partner at KPMG Milan. “With BlackBerry 10 we have found the best solution in terms of usability, security, connectivity and price. The BlackBerry solution allows our users to have access to shared files and other internal resources, while also working to prevent the accidental leakage of business documents and attachments.”
With features like BlackBerry® Balance™ technology, which keeps corporate information separated and secure from personal content, customers can access the corporate resources they need, and effortlessly switch the profile on their BlackBerry 10 smartphone to enjoy the full consumer experience, including access to personal apps, multimedia, the Internet and public social networks. KPMG employees can also benefit from built-in productivity features such as Documents To Go™, which lets employees view and edit Microsoft® Word, Excel® and PowerPoint® documents on the go, or use their BlackBerry 10 smartphone’s HDMI connection to make presentations to clients.
“Security, usability and cost effectiveness are at the heart of the BlackBerry 10 solution. The combination of BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 and BlackBerry 10 smartphones delivers a breakthrough platform that combines state-of-the-art security with a powerful new mobile computing experience,” said Alberto Acito, Managing Director, for South East Europe at BlackBerry. “Customers understand the value and benefits of our offering and this is why more than 25,000 BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 commercial and test servers have already been installed globally, including within many of the world’s top organizations.”
About BlackBerry
A global leader in wireless innovation, BlackBerry® revolutionized the mobile industry when it was introduced in 1999. Today, BlackBerry aims to inspire the success of our millions of customers around the world by continuously pushing the boundaries of mobile experiences. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. BlackBerry is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ: BBRY) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BB). For more information, visit www.blackberry.com