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Canadian government reportedly nixed Lenovo’s BlackBerry bid

Published Nov 5th, 2013 1:59PM EST
BlackBerry Lenovo Merger Canadian Government

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It looks like Chinese electronics giant Lenovo really was interested in BlackBerry after all. The Globe and Mail reports that although Lenovo was considering making a formal bid for the one-time Canadian smartphone titan, the Canadian government repeatedly told BlackBerry that such a move was a complete nonstarter because of national security concerns. BlackBerry was also seemingly cool to Lenovo’s overtures, mostly because even if the government changed its mind about approving it, it would still take months of review before passing off on a merger. That Ottawa flat-out rejected Lenovo’s bid for BlackBerry isn’t too surprising since BlackBerry is responsible for a lot of critical military and national security communications infrastructure in North America.

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.