BlackBerry has been searching for a buyer since 2012, report says

BlackBerry announced this week that it’s considering selling itself, but the Canadian phone-maker may have a hard time finding a buyer.

According to a report Tuesday, BlackBerry has already been secretly looking for a buyer for nearly a year.

Bloomberg says JPMorgan Chase & Co. and RBC Capital Markets have been quietly shopping the tech company to possible bidders but the prospect of buying BlackBerry received little interest. The Bloomberg report cites two unnamed sources.

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This year was supposed to be a big one for BlackBerry, which released a new version of its operating system, BlackBerry 10, and a slew of new devices under the leadership of CEO Thorsten Heins. BlackBerry was banking on the new platform helping it regain a foothold in the U.S. market now dominated by Google and Apple, but that doesn’t appear to be happening.

BlackBerry announced Monday the creation of a special committee that will evaluate all of the company’s options, including selling itself or going into a joint venture or strategic partnership with other companies.

Among the interested buyers may be Prem Watsa, BlackBerry’s largest shareholder. He stepped down from the company’s board earlier this week because he and his investment firm, Fairfax Financial Holdings, may decide to make a bid for the company.

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