India sets 15-day ultimatum on BlackBerry network
updated 02:30 pm EDT, Tue March 25, 2008
India BlackBerry Ultimatum
BlackBerry creator Research in Motion has been given just 15 days to allow government monitoring of its smartphone network in India, the country's Department of Telecom has said. Previous statements that had suggested a reprieve are now being contradicted by a warning that RIM must allow inspection of the content passing across its network to screen for security threats. Without an agreement, the Indian government will be forced to shut down access to RIM's "push" e-mail network, according to a new statement.
RIM has responded by saying that it respects laws in foreign countries but also that it doesn't comment on regulatory issues.
If put into effect, the shutdown would cut off access for roughly 400,000 Indian BlackBerry users, significantly cutting into RIM's active user base. Most of RIM's subscriber base is located in North America but is also protected by local privacy laws.
