RIM Will Increase Workforce by 50 in Fredericton
Benjamin Shingler
Telegraph-Journal
The Canadian wireless giant behind the BlackBerry will today announce 50 new jobs in Fredericton.
Chalk Media, a company owned by Research in Motion, is almost doubling its Fredericton workforce.
Rick Miles, the Liberal MLA for Fredericton Silverwood, confirmed the news Sunday.
"It shows confidence in the market here in New Brunswick and in Fredericton," Miles told the Telegraph-Journal.
"Research in Motion has good confidence in Chalk Media and sees New Brunswick as a growing centre for innovation and technology."
Miles said the province is helping to fund the expansion.
He described the new posts as "high-level," with jobs available for senior project engineers and software developers.
Further details will be revealed during a news conference this afternoon at the University of New Brunswick, which Premier Shawn Graham and Business New Brunswick Minister Victor Boudreau are slated to attend.
Chalk Media, which was acquired by Research in Motion about a year ago, is the developer behind the popular software Mobile Chalkboard.
The software allows users to download complex content to hand-held devices.
For example, Chalkboard can be used to deliver training programs or full-length television programs.
Graham hinted last January that Research in Motion "has big plans for the province" beyond simply the takeover of Chalk Media.
Chalk Media's vice- president of technology, Mike LeBlanc, said previously the company wants to "make an impact on RIM's bottom line and help them compete against iPhone and Google."
LeBlanc has said RIM executives see Fredericton as a spot to grow the company, which he concurred has already hired the best and brightest in and around Waterloo, Ont.
About 50 or 60 of Chalk Media's 75-person workforce are based at its Fredericton office. The company also operates out of Washington, D.C. and Vancouver.