BBRY Blackberry Limited

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 7, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- AT&T¹ and BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in mobile communications, today announced that the newly redesigned BlackBerry® Passport will be available exclusively at www.att.com and in AT&T retail stores. Additional availability will be announced in coming weeks.

Built for productivity, the BlackBerry Passport has been uniquely designed for AT&T users with rounded edges. The BlackBerry Passport has a large 4.5-inch square touch screen and a touch-enabled QWERTY keyboard, giving users ideal content viewing without compromising portability. Built on BlackBerry's secure 10.3.1 operating system, the BlackBerry Passport will run on AT&T's network: the nation's most reliable 4G LTE network and the network that has the nation's strongest LTE signal,² covering more than 300 million Americans, allowing AT&T users to stay on top of business needs every day.

The BlackBerry Passport will be available in the near future for $0 down on an AT&T Next plan at $21.67 per month with AT&T Next 24,³ $27.09 with AT&T Next 18³ or $32.50 per month with AT&T Next 12.³ You can also get the smartphone for $199.99 with a two-year agreement⁴ or at no annual commitment for $649.99.⁵

"The BlackBerry Passport is ideal for the power professional who wants an innovative wireless device focused on productivity," said Jeff Bradley, SVP, Device Marketing and Developer Services, AT&T. "Available first on the AT&T network in the U.S., customers will benefit from the newly redesigned Passport's enhanced features, including a wider screen, 32 GB of storage, and a 3450 mAh battery."

"We value our continued partnership with AT&T and we look forward to launching the new and uniquely designed BlackBerry Passport device for AT&T customers in the U.S.," said Ron Louks, President, Devices and Emerging Solutions at BlackBerry. "Built with security at its core, the BlackBerry Passport stands apart from the rectangular-screen, all-touch devices in the market today, offering users more than a full day of battery life and new innovations, including the industry's first touch-enabled QWERTY keyboard."

The BlackBerry Passport boasts a 453 dpi, a 4.5-inch square full HD screen, 2.2 GHZ Quad Core Qualcomm processor, a 13 MP OIS Camera and 32 GB of Storage. Additional key features include:

• BlackBerry® Keyboard: The BlackBerry Passport's revolutionary new keyboard brings innovation to input with a responsive touch surface that lets you perform many functions directly on the keyboard. You can scroll web pages, flick to type or slide along the keys to move the cursor, leaving the full screen space for viewing.
• BlackBerry® 10 OS 10.3.1: The BlackBerry Passport comes preloaded with the BlackBerry 10.3.1 operating system, and comes with a fresh look that incorporates updated icons and an action bar so that each user's most commonly accessed functions are in the center of their screen.
• BlackBerry® Blend: BlackBerry Blend allows customers to securely access messaging and content, through their smartphone, on their compatible computer and tablet.⁶ Customers can now receive instant notifications, read and respond to work and personal messages, and access documents, calendar, contacts and media in real time on whatever device they are working on.
• BlackBerry® Assistant: BlackBerry Assistant is a voice and text command application that enables users to manage work and personal email, contacts, calendar and other BlackBerry® 10 features through simple commands.
• Battery Power Designed to Keep Up with You: Known for its enduring battery life, Blackberry does not disappoint with the BlackBerry Passport. The BlackBerry Passport delivers BlackBerry's best battery performance to date with a powerful 3450 mAh battery and optimization of power consumption with up to 30 hours of mixed use.⁷
• BlackBerry® Hub: Offering a better way to manage emails, social messages, BBM™ and notifications, BlackBerry Hub makes all of your conversations available with one swipe. BlackBerry Priority Hub offers a filtering solution so you can respond to messages by importance.  With Instant Actions in Hub customers can quickly delete or file multiple messages, as well as accept meeting invites without having to open the invitation.

AT&T was the first wireless carrier to launch a BlackBerry device in the U.S. with the BlackBerry 950 in 1999; first with a GSM enabled product with the BlackBerry 5810 and 5820 in 2002; and the first and only to launch the exclusive BlackBerry Torch with full QWERTY keyboard and touchscreen in 2011. The BlackBerry Z10 was the first BlackBerry smartphone to run on AT&T's 4G LTE network.

AT&T is committed to delivering fast and friendly service to its customers. AT&T was recognized as the highest ranked wireless provider for overall purchasing experience by J.D. Power,⁸ for the third time in a row.  AT&T outperformed competitors in the J.D. Power 2014 Volume 2 study and received the "Highest Satisfaction with the Purchase Experience among Full-Service Wireless Providers, Three Times in a Row."

For more information about the BlackBerry Passport, visit att.com/blackberrypassport or blackberry.com/passport.

¹AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.
² Nationwide carriers' LTE.  Signal strength claim based ONLY on avg. LTE signal strength.  LTE not avail. everywhere.
³Requires 20-mth or 24-mth 0% APR installment agreement and qualifying credit and wireless service. Tax due at sale.  If wireless service cancelled, device balance due. Service costs additional. Other charges and restrictions apply.  AT&T Next Requirements: www.att.com/shop/wireless/next.html#fbid=mkEz9ThvDiO.
⁴$199.99 pricing. Requires 2-year agreement with qualifying data plan. Activation/upgrade, early termination and other fees, and restrictions apply. Pricing Requirements: www.att.com/att/planner/index.html#fbid=yRbS77904im.
⁵Requires activation of new line of qualified wireless service. 
⁶ Requires download of BlackBerry® Blend app and pairing with a compatible device.  BlackBerry Blend works across desktop operating systems, including Mac OS X 10.7 + and Windows 7+, iPad tablets running iOS 7+ and Android tablets running Android 4.4+.  For more information visit www.BlackBerry.com/Blend.
⁷ Based on mixed usage scenario. Many factors affect battery life, including network, application usage, feature configuration and battery age. Actual results may vary.
⁸AT&T received the highest numerical score among full service wireless providers in the proprietary J.D. Power 2013 (Vol. 2) and 2014 (Vol. 1 & 2) Full Service Wireless Purchase Experience Study(SM). 2014 Vol. 2 based on responses from 10,079 consumers measuring 4 full service wireless providers and measures opinions of consumers who purchased a wireless product or service within last 6 months.  Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of consumers surveyed January-June 2014.  Your experiences may vary. Visit jdpower.com.

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and internationally. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the network with the nation's strongest LTE signal as well as the nation's most reliable LTE network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile Internet, AT&T also offers the best global wireless coverage, based on offering voice and data roaming in more countries than any other U.S. based carrier, and offering the most wireless smartphones and tablets that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV service with the AT&T U-verse^® brand. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. 

Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at www.att.com/aboutus or follow our news on Twitter at @ATT, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/att and YouTube at www.youtube.com/att.

© 2015 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

About BlackBerry
A global leader in mobile communications, BlackBerry® revolutionized the mobile industry when it was introduced in 1999. Today, BlackBerry aims to inspire the success of our millions of customers around the world by continuously pushing the boundaries of mobile experiences. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols "BB" on the Toronto Stock Exchange and "BBRY" on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

The BlackBerry family of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of BlackBerry Limited.  BlackBerry, BBM, QNX and related trademarks are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be pending or registered in other countries.  All other brands, product names, company names, trademarks and service marks are the properties of their respective owners.

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SOURCE AT&T Inc.