Blackberry chief blows a raspberry at tech recession

NEWS Balsillie said RIM had not noticed a fall in demand, and expected to hit a "homerun" this year. Earnings of ten cents per share for the quarter, ending 28 February, beat analyst expectations of seven cents per share, and marked a steep increase on earnings of four cents per share for the same quarter last year. Revenue of $90.1m also beat analyst expectations of $75m, and jumped 249 per cent on the same period a year earlier. RIM earned $8.3m in the quarter, but including a charge of $14.8m for declines in long-term investment, it recorded a loss of $6.5m or eight cents per share. RIM recently signed a deal with BT to market the Blackberry device in the UK.