Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Phones
  3. Business
  4. Mobile
  5. News

BlackBerry wants you to do its advertising by joining its fan league

By
Add as a preferred source on Google

You may not have owned a BlackBerry since you were a teenager, but don’t be fooled — there are still die-hard fans of this seemingly vintage handset to be found around the world. Now, in order to bring this seemingly dwindling group together, BlackBerry launched a new BlackBerry Smartphone Fan League. Because what better way to show your support for your mobile phone than by joining its fan club?

Calling its loyal supporters some of the “most loyal and passionate in the world,” BlackBerry Mobile from TCL Communication (which purchased the rights to BlackBerry back in December 2016), hopes that its new Fan League might find “new and creative ways to engage with BlackBerry smartphone fans.” After all, when there aren’t many of your kind, there’s plenty of camaraderie to be found simply in identifying your compatriots.

Recommended Videos

The goal will be to improve awareness of new Android-powered BlackBerry smartphones like the BlackBerry Keyone, and also help fans “feel more connected” to the smartphone brand. Should you choose to join the Fan League, you have the opportunity to win both weekly and monthly prizes, including the ultimate prize — a new BlackBerry device. Moreover, they will also be called upon to participate in special user surveys and various beta testing programs, which should give them more sway over what comes next from the BlackBerry Mobile team.

“Launching the BlackBerry Smartphone Fan League is our way of better engaging with our customers, rewarding their loyalty and passion for BlackBerry smartphones, but also giving them a voice that will shape the future of BlackBerry smartphones from TCL Communication,” said Alain Lejeune, Global General Manager for TCL Communication’s BlackBerry Mobile Division.

So how exactly will the Fan League work? The points-based so-called social engagement platform will encourage participants to re-share BlackBerry Mobile social media content, create their own content about their BlackBerry smartphone, and recruit new Fan League members. Really, it’s as though the Fan League will be an extension of BlackBerry’s advertising business. Each of these activities will garner participants points, and these points will help them earn entries in order to win various prizes. To begin, the Fan League will be made available only to BlackBerry Mobile customers in Canada, the U.S., and U.K.

Lulu Chang
Lulu Chang
Former Contributor
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
Topics
Pixel 11’s seven-year spare-parts promise could be perfect to ride out RAMageddon
Pixel 11 continues Google’s seven-year spare-parts support as phone prices climb
Electronics, Mobile Phone, Phone

The Pixel 11 series has plenty of new hardware and software features to talk about, but one detail that stood out to me has actually been around for a few generations.

Google is continuing its seven-year spare-parts commitment with the Pixel 11 series, a policy it first introduced with the Pixel 8 back in 2023. It means batteries, displays, and other replacement components should remain available long after the usual upgrade cycle has come and gone.

Read more
Google’s hyped-up RGB HiLight on the Pixel 11 Pro had me excited for nothing
Google’s cleverest new hardware might also be its biggest missed opportunity.
Electronics, Mobile Phone, Phone

I have been following rumors about Google’s new HiLight feature long before the company even announced its name. A few weeks ago, reports spoke about the feature as Google’s AI interface, something that glows when users speak to Gemini. 

Now that the company has wrapped the Pixel 11 launch event, everything’s out in the open, and one of the only two things it does is light up when you speak to Gemini. So, after all the speculations and build-up, Google’s big reveal is… basically the same thing we thought it was, and I have some strong thoughts about that. 

Read more
Galaxy phones may finally get a basic privacy feature Samsung missed
One UI 9.5 could let you lock an app without jumping through hoops
Computer, Electronics, Tablet Computer

Samsung gives Galaxy owners an impressive amount of control over their phones. Features like Good Lock let users customize just about every aspect of their smartphones. But somehow, the company forgot to put a simple alaxy owners an almost ridiculous amount of control over their phones. Somehow, simply adding a fingerprint lock for apps.

With the One UI 9.5 update, this might finally change. Tipster Fahad Ali Javed has uncovered a native App Lock feature inside an unreleased One UI 9.5 build running on a Galaxy S26. So you would be able to secure individual apps directly from the app drawer without moving them somewhere else first. This could be one of One UI 9.5's simplest and most useful additions.

Read more