Lenovo is looking into acquiring BlackBerry, says report

Lenovo’s name has resurfaced as a possible suitor for BlackBerry. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Chinese company is “considering” a purchase of Blackberry, adding that “the firm has signed a non-disclosure agreement to look at the smartphone maker’s books.”

Earlier this year Lenovo’s name surfaced as a possible suitor for the troubled Canadian phone maker when an executive said that “We are looking at all opportunities — RIM and many others.” Lenovo later distanced itself from such reports. Now that BlackBerry is openly courting buyers, however, it appears Lenovo is seriously looking into a purchase. A Canadian holding company Fairfax Financial offered $4.7 billion for BlackBerry last month, but it seems that offer may be falling through. Bloomberg reported earlier this week that a deal with Fairfax was becoming unlikely as BlackBerry’s stock price falls below the firm’s offer amount. This most recent round of acquisition talks surfaced after BlackBerry announced a disastrous quarter and its intentions to back away from the consumer market to focus on enterprise instead.

Lenovo has a smartphone business of its own — the Android devices are primarily sold in the company’s home market of China — and it’s unclear if its primary interest is in BlackBerry’s hardware or software expertise. CEO Yang Yuanqing said this past May that the company wanted to enter the US smartphone market within a years’ time, adding “Smartphones are our new opportunity.” He noted at that time that the company would consider an acquisition to boost its presence in the US.