BlackBerry users in UAE not switching despite looming ban
updated 06:15 pm EDT, Tue October 5, 2010
BlackBerry UAE users not giving up their phones
BlackBerry users in the United Arab Emirates are not giving up their handsets, despite facing a suspension of services if the government and Research In Motion do not come to an agreement. According to a Tuesday report, nearly all of the some 500,000 subscribers believe a deal will be reached by their retention of the service. Etisalat, the country's BlackBerry provider, says they have not seen a decrease in their subscriber count.
The UAE government officials say BlackBerry Messenger service will be suspended, along with e-mail and web browser service starting Monday, October 11 if RIM doesn't place encrypted servers in the country that grant security officials access to messages. The deadline may be extended if a deal is in the works but not finalized.
Etisalat and du, the two mobile providers in UAE, are readying for the ban by offering smartphones from Nokia and Apple.
