OnwardMobility, an American start-up, announced in August 2020 that it has obtained the right to use the BlackBerry trademark and is developing BlackBerry 5G phones using the Android system. There are rumors that the BlackBerry 5G mobile phone developed by OnwardMobility is equipped with a sliding structure, and the QWERTY physical keyboard can be seen by sliding the screen up.
OnwardMobility has always emphasized that the BlackBerry 5G phone will be released in 2021, but later admitted that it might not be launched as scheduled for various reasons. The website CrackBerry recently quoted a number of people familiar with the matter as saying that both the OnwardMobility and BlackBerry 5G projects have ended. The website Android Police said OnwardMobility’s right to use the BlackBerry trademark had been cancelled earlier, and it is reported that BlackBerry CEO Cheng Shouzong does not want to see the brand being used in smart phones once more.
BlackBerry exited the smartphone market in 2016 and then focused on enterprise cybersecurity products and services, licensing the brand to TCL and Optiemus Infracom, but none of those companies have since renewed their contracts. It is unknown at this stage whether OnwardMobility will continue to launch mobile phones, or whether it will cease operations entirely.
source:theverge
