RIM averts BlackBerry service closure in Saudi

A ban on the use of the BlackBerry mobile devices in Saudi Arabia was averted on August 6, the date that Saudi regulatory authorities had threatened they would suspend services enabling the sending and receiving of messages from the devices.

It has been reported that RIM (Research in Motion), the Canada-based manufacturer of BlackBerry devices, reached a preliminary agreement with Saudi authorities whereby the manufacturer agreed to place a server in-country, in order for messages to be scrutinised by third-parties, as necessary.

While RIM encrypts e-mails, its deal with Saudi authorities would allow them to be opened by Saudi surveillance. A number of countries, including the UAE, Indonesia and India see the devices as a potential security threat because encrypted information sent on them is difficult, if not impossible, for local governments to monitor when it does not pass through in-country servers.

RIM has not commented officially on the proposed deal, but referred to a statement it issued last week denying it has given some governments access to BlackBerry data.

The arrangement in Saudi Arabia is similar to deals RIM has struck in Russia and China. Thus it is expected that RIM is likely to reach a compromise in the UAE, a country in which services are scheduled to be suspended on October 11 should nothing have changed.

However, the requirement of regulatory bodies in the Gulf requiring access to data transmitted over BlackBerry devices looks set to escalate. In Bahrain, for example, the country’s leading telco Batelco recently issued a statement letting subscribers know it would do everything in its power to minimise inconvenience should authorities there require it to suspend any BlackBerry operations.

“We want to assure all our BlackBerry customers that Batelco is working on alternative offers to minimise any inconvenience should some services be suspended,” said Batelco group general manager Media Relations, Ahmed Al Janahi.

“We will fully comply with any directive to suspend some BlackBerry services, should such be issued, as this is a legal obligation on Batelco. It’s not proper to speculate what the specific alternative offers will be at this stage. Our marketing and sales teams are finalising such offers. We believe that no Batelco customer should be financially penalised if limitations are placed on some BlackBerry services – we will address all customers’ concerns as quickly as practicable,” he added.