BlackBerry to retreat from consumer market, lay off 4,500 employees

As was reported earlier this week, BlackBerry will be laying off 4,500 employees, over a third of its workforce. The layoff comes in an unexpected early earnings guidance release, in which the struggling manufacturer reveals it lost almost $1 billion last quarter. The loss is mainly attributable to the failed launch of BlackBerry's Z10 smartphone. The company says it expects a "primarily non-cash, pre-tax charge against inventory and supply commitments in the second quarter of approximately $930 million to $960 million" due mainly to the Z10.

Moving forward, BlackBerry appears to be stepping back from the mainstream consumer market to focus on what it calls "prosumer" and enterprise-focused devices. It says it'll trim its smartphone offerings down from six to just four devices; two high-end, two entry-level. Its new Z30 smartphone is clearly aimed at the high-end, with the Z10 to be "re-tiered" as an entry-level handset — expect deep price cuts in the near future.

Speaking on today's news, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins called the changes "difficult, but necessary... Going forward, we plan to refocus our offering on our end-to-end solution of hardware, software and services for enterprises and the productive, professional end user." The quote is as clear an indication as you'll get that BlackBerry sees no future for itself as a maker of consumer smartphones.

Trading of BlackBerry's stock was halted this afternoon ahead of the huge announcement.