BlackBerry-Qualcomm Partnership To Tap Automotive Market

BlackBerry Limited (NYSE:BB) and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) , have announced to collaborate and develop groundbreaking automotive platforms for next-generation connected vehicles.

Per the deal, a select few hardware platforms of Qualcomm Technologies will be optimized with BlackBerry's QNX software for use in virtual cockpit controllers, telematics, eCall and Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything technology, etc.

Additionally, BlackBerry over-the-air software and BlackBerry Secure Credential Management services will be optimized for use with some of the Qualcomm Snapdragon modems. This will further enable the companies to offer faster and more affordable high performance automotive platforms.

Per the agreement, the two companies will optimize Qualcomm-made technologies for QNX software, which will be used in a wide range of applications in the automotive space such as electronic control gateways and digital instrument clusters as well as infotainment systems.

BlackBerry Limited Price

BlackBerry Limited Price | BlackBerry Limited Quote

Notably, BlackBerry and Qualcomm Technologies have been partners for more than a decade. Earlier in the year, BlackBerry received $940 million from Qualcomm in a patent-related dispute.

We note that BlackBerry has been making continued efforts to expand its footprint. To this end, it has inked several deals of late. On a positive note, BlackBerry is entitled to receive royalties from watchmaker Timex, courtesy of its contract with the latter. Also, it signed an agreement with Appdome, the first cloud hub for mobile app integration.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

BlackBerry carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Two better-ranked stocks in the same space are SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM) and Vodafone Group Plc (NASDAQ:VOD) , both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Shares of SK Telecom and Vodafone have rallied more than 25% and 22%, respectively, in a year.

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