South Koreans to receive taste of BlackBerry

South Korean telecoms rules have been relaxed to allow BlackBerrys to go on sale and may be available as early as August to corporations, but not individuals.

Previous restrictions meant mobile phones sold in the country must use a locally developed wireless software platform known as WIPI, in turn favouring Korean brands Samsung and LG Electronics, which control 80 per cent of the local market.

Officials of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and the Korea Communications Commission said they would no longer apply the rules governing mobile devices to BlackBerry, classifying it as a PDA instead.

“There have been continuous requests from foreign investors that they should be able to use the BlackBerry here,” an official from the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said. “This issue has been raised as a hindrance to investment.”

Some government officials believe the software regulations are outdated because the distinction between PDAs, smartphones and mobile handsets have become blurred due to technical advancements.

South Korea’s laws were originally enacted to help protect the domestic economy from foreign competition, but recently president Lee Myung-bak vowed to deregulate the sector and help stimulate further competition.