RIM buys NewBay for BlackBerry cloud-based media

By Rue Liu/Oct. 7, 2011 2:54 pm EST

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) has signed an agreement to purchase NewBay Software, a Dublin-based company that provides white-label cloud-based content services. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but sources familiar with the situation claim that the purchase price is about $100 million.

NewBay offers white-label content services branded for network operators including Telefonica, Deutsche Telekom, AT&T, and Verizon. It currently has more than 80 million subscribers and provides them with a cloud-based media management platform for storing and sharing photos, videos, and other media.

Although the intent of the purchase was not revealed, it's apparent that RIM's move to purchase NewBay has to do with creating a cloud-based BlackBerry content service to rival that of Apple's iCloud and Amazon's Cloud Drive.

[via Reuters]