BlackBerry has found a new taker for its patents after the previously-agreed deal with Catapult IP failed to go through due to financing problems. The software company announced earlier this week that it changed course and will now transfer the ownership of the patents to Malikie Innovations.
Malikie, which is part of Key Patent Innovations Ltd, will initially pay $170 million cash for a package of patents that are mostly related to mobile devices. BlackBerry will receive an additional $30 million in the next three years as well as annual cash royalties, which are expected to get the value of the deal to $900 million.
BlackBerry previously agreed to sell all of its “non-core patent assets” to Catapult IP in an agreement worth $600 million. However, after the deal wasn’t completed in time due to Catapult’s failure to secure financing, the Canadian company changed course and decided to enter negotiations with other interested parties.
“Catapult was unable to secure financing that would have enabled it to complete the previously announced transaction on amended terms that were acceptable to BlackBerry,” BlackBerry said in a press release announcing the deal.
BlackBerry stopped designing new mobile devices in 2016 after losing most of its share market to Android and iOS smartphones. The company instead opted for licensing deals while making cybersecurity and software production its main focus.