BlackBerry will give €440 to customers who switch from iPhone to a BlackBerry Passport

Customers will get a combination of cash and a pre-paid card to ditch Apple for BlackBerry

Jamie Dunkley

BlackBerry is to offer iPhone users up to $550 (€400) to switch to its latest Passport model as it battles to regain its former glory.

The “BlackBerry Trade Up” programme is available only in the US and Canada and could see customers get up to $400 in cash for handing in their Apple phones, as well getting as a $150 prepaid Visa card.

However, the amount paid for iPhones will depend on their condition.

The offer is the latest attempt by BlackBerry to claw back some of the market share it has lost to Apple and Android handsets.

According to recent figures, its global market share has fallen to less than 1pc.

BlackBerry will launch its long-awaited Classic smartphone on December 17 at events in New York, Frankfurt and Singapore.

The device, which bears similarities to the once popular BlackBerry Bold, will go on sale immediately in launch markets and be priced at $449.