Here’s some rare cheer for BlackBerry fans — the company’s next smartphone might actually be promoted with a decent marketing campaign. Per StreetInsider, BlackBerry announced on Monday that its chief marketing officer Frank Boulben and its chief operating officer Kristian Tear are both leaving the company. BlackBerry is also appointing James Yersh to replace Brian Bidulka as its Chief Financial Officer.
BlackBerry’s lackluster marketing campaigns for its new BlackBerry 10 devices have drawn the ire of some BlackBerry diehards who think that the company would be in a much better position today if it had marketed its devices better. Among other things, Boulben has come under fire for marketing mishaps such as appointing Alicia Keys as the company’s creative director and a baffling Super Bowl ad that focussed on teleportation and rubber duckies more than the actual smartphone it was supposed to be promoting.
BlackBerry has seen a slew of executive departures so far this year, highlighted most recently by the departure of former CEO Thorsten Heins. The company has also laid off thousands of workers this year in an attempt to save money after its comeback attempt with the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones fell flat.
BlackBerry shares were down marginally by 1.44% in premarket trading following the announcement.
