Qualcomm, Cerberus also said to be in the running for BlackBerry bid
After years of falling by the wayside, BlackBerry is one of the hottest companies in tech news these days -- at least when it comes to fighting over the still-valuable remnants.
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As of Friday afternoon, there are now a few more names to add to the list of everyone suddenly interested in the beleaguered Canadian phone maker.
According to The Wall Street Journal, chip maker Qualcomm and private investment firm Cerberus are also said to be interested in making some bids.
The WSJ's report hints there is more credibility for a joint deal involving these three parties given that Cerberus has reportedly been conferring with then-RIM co-founders Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin.
The addition of these two tech giants follows reports earlier this week that Facebook had met with BlackBerry executives at the social network's Menlo Park, Calif. headquarters to discuss a potential deal.
Neither party in that case has commented publicly on the results of those talks -- although such plans would fall in line with Facebook's mobile agenda, evidently reinforced by the company's third quarter earnings report on Wednesday.
Facebook is also testing a new feature for its Messenger for Android app that quite similar to one of the most popular on BlackBerry's platform: BlackBerry Messenger (BBM).
The highlight of the Android software update is a mobile-to-mobile messaging experience in which Facebook members will be able to send messages to other users who aren't their Facebook friends already -- if they have the recipient's phone number.
Ever since the company formerly known as Research In Motion put itself on the market in August, which was followed by a preliminary $4.7 billion buyout deal with Fairfax Financial Holdings in September, numerous reports have circulated about other tech giants wanting a piece of the BlackBerry pie.
Prior to Facebook, Lenovo was one of many named around the rumor mill as a potential buyer.
We'll find out soon enough which bids go thorough as BlackBerry is scheduled to reveal its decisions this Monday, November 4.