Doug Fregin is a Canadian entrepreneur and engineer. He is best known as the co-founder of Research In Motion (now known as BlackBerry) alongside his childhood friend, Mike Lazaridis.
Fregin had been friends with Mike Lazaridis since grade school[2][3] Fregin studied electrical engineering at the University of Windsor.[4] After university, they developed a video signaling device.[5]
Research In Motion (RIM) and achievements
In 1984, Fregin and Lazaridis founded Research In Motion to market their innovative device.[6][7] In February 1985, they received a $15,000 Ontario New Ventures loan.[3]
Fregin played a vital role in designing the initial circuit boards used in the company's wireless technology.[8]
Beyond Research In Motion's success in the mobile industry, Fregin was also involved in the creation of other groundbreaking technologies. The DigiSync film reader, developed by RIM, revolutionized the work of movie editors by significantly reducing the time required for post-production tasks. This technology earned RIM both an Emmy and a technical achievement award from the Academy Awards.[9]
As Research In Motion went public in 1997, Fregin's ownership stake in the company amounted to 5% of shares, valued at $23.6 million.[6] Over the years, the value of his ownership increased, and in 2005, he owned 2.7% of RIM, which had a value of $396 million.[6][11]
Fregin retired from his position as vice president of operations at RIM in May 2007.[12] At that time, he held a 2% ownership stake in the company, valued at $1.3 billion.[13]
Beyond his entrepreneurial endeavors, Fregin is known for his low-key and low-profile nature. He is a car enthusiast and participates in Toyota's charitable Pro/Celebrity Race.[16]
Fregin was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering by the University of Waterloo on June 19, 2022, for his achievements.[17]
↑ The Agenda with Steve Paikin (May 12, 2016). "Losing the Signal". youtube. Retrieved June 5, 2023. Jacquie McNish, co-author of "Losing the Signal: The Spectacular Rise and Fall of BlackBerry," joins The Agenda to discuss the company's fate.
BlackBerry is a discontinued brand of smartphones and other related mobile services and devices. The line was originally developed and maintained by the Canadian company BlackBerry Limited from 1999 to 2016, after which it was licensed to various companies.
BlackBerry Limited is a Canadian software company specializing in cybersecurity. Founded in 1984, it developed the BlackBerry brand of interactive pagers, smartphones, and tablets. The company transitioned to providing software and services and holds critical software application patents.
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics is an independent research centre in foundational theoretical physics located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1999. The institute's founding and major benefactor is Canadian entrepreneur and philanthropist Mike Lazaridis.
Mihal "Mike" Lazaridis is a Canadian businessman, investor in quantum computing technologies, and co-founder of BlackBerry, which created and manufactured the BlackBerry wireless handheld device. In November 2009, Canadian Business ranked Lazaridis as the 11th wealthiest Canadian, with an estimated net worth of CA$2.9billion.
James Laurence Balsillie is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. He was the former chair and co-chief executive officer of the Canadian technology company Research In Motion (BlackBerry), which at its 2011 peak made US$19.9billion in annual sales.
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The Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) is an affiliate scientific research institute of the University of Waterloo located in Waterloo, Ontario with a multidisciplinary approach to the field of quantum information processing. IQC was founded in 2002 primarily through a donation made by Mike Lazaridis and his wife Ophelia whose substantial donations have continued over the years. The institute is now located in the Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre and the Research Advancement Centre at the University of Waterloo.
Prem Watsa is an Indian-Canadian billionaire businessman who is the founder, chairman, and chief executive of Fairfax Financial Holdings, based in Toronto. He has been called the "Canadian Warren Buffett." He was awarded the fourth highest civilian award of India, Padma Shri, in January 2020.
BBM, also known by its full name BlackBerry Messenger, was a consumer-oriented proprietary mobile instant messenger and videotelephony application service originally developed by BlackBerry Limited and later briefly by Indonesian company Emtek under licence. Initially it was included and offered on BlackBerry devices before it was expanded cross-platform. BBM was shut down on 31 May 2019; the company since continues to offer the paid enterprise edition, BBM Enterprise.
The Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology (WIN) is located at the University of Waterloo and is co-located with the Institute for Quantum Computing in the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre (QNC). WIN is currently headed by Dr. Sushanta Mitra.
Raymond Laflamme, OC, FRSC is a Canadian theoretical physicist and founder and until mid 2017, was the director of the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo. He is also a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Waterloo and an associate faculty member at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. Laflamme is currently a Canada Research Chair in Quantum Information. In December 2017, he was named as one of the appointees to the Order of Canada.
The BlackBerry PlayBook is a mini tablet computer that was developed by BlackBerry. It was manufactured by Quanta Computer, an original design manufacturer (ODM). It was first released for sale on April 19, 2011, in Canada and the United States.
The BlackBerry Torch 9800 is a 2010 model in the BlackBerry line of smartphones. It combines a physical QWERTY keyboard with a sliding multi-touch screen display and runs on BlackBerry OS 6. Introduced on August 3, 2010, the phone became available exclusively on AT&T on August 12, 2010.
BlackBerry Torch is a series of smartphones manufactured by BlackBerry Ltd. The lineup consists of the following:
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The BlackBerry Z10 was an LTE touchscreen-based smartphone developed by BlackBerry, previously known as RIM. The BlackBerry Z10 was the first of two new BlackBerry phones presented at the BlackBerry 10 event on January 30, 2013. The BlackBerry Z10 was followed by the Z30.
Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre is a research and development laboratory for quantum information science and nanotechnology at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The facilities are shared by the Waterloo Institute for Quantum Computing, the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology and the Nanotechnology Engineering program at the University of Waterloo.
BlackBerry is a 2023 Canadian biographical comedy-drama film directed by Matt Johnson from a script by Johnson and producer Matthew Miller. It was loosely adapted from Jacquie McNish and Sean Silcoff's book Losing the Signal: The Untold Story Behind the Extraordinary Rise and Spectacular Fall of BlackBerry. The film is a fictional account of the creation of the BlackBerry line of mobile phone by co-founders Douglas Fregin and Mike Lazaridis, and investor Jim Balsillie. Lazaridis is portrayed by Jay Baruchel, Balsillie is portrayed by Glenn Howerton, and Fregin is portrayed by Johnson. It also stars Rich Sommer, Michael Ironside, Martin Donovan, Michelle Giroux, SungWon Cho, Mark Critch, Saul Rubinek, and Cary Elwes in supporting roles.
Matthew Miller is a Canadian screenwriter and producer. He is also a contractual university lecturer. Miller's work has been featured at international film festivals and has garnered awards at TIFF, Sundance, and Berlin International Film Festival.
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RIM co-founder Mike Lazaridis, employee Chris Shaw and co-founder Doug Fregin display the Budgie, the company’s first product, at Fairview Park Mall in Kitchener, Ontario, 1984. [1] 
