A major landmark in the BlackBerry takeover process is set to happen later today, when it is revealed how many companies are willing to make a counter-bid for the struggling Canadian smartphone giant.
According to Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail, over recent weeks executives from the company have been trying to drum up interest from a range of bidders, including Facebook.
The deadline for rival bids is part of the takeover process kicked off when a consortium led by Canadian investment guru Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings signed a $US4.7 billion letter of intent to buy the company.
However, Reuters reports Watsa might be struggling to raise the capital to finance his takeover bid, with several large lenders reportedly turning down the consortium over concerns about BlackBerry’s long-term viability.
BlackBerry recently began a program that will see it cull 40% of its worldwide workforce, or around 4500 jobs.
Recently, the company took out full-page ads in 30 newspapers across nine countries, in a bid to reassure its customers and business partners about its ongoing viability despite recent losses, job cuts and the sale process.
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