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Jakarta Post

Govt lifts suspension on BlackBerrys

The Information and Communications Ministry has lifted the suspension of sales certification for BlackBerrys after the producer of the smartphone, Research in Motion Ltd

(The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Tue, September 8, 2009

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Govt lifts suspension on BlackBerrys

T

he Information and Communications Ministry has lifted the suspension of sales certification for BlackBerrys after the producer of the smartphone, Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM), provided after-sales services in the country.

Information and Communications Ministry spokesman Gatot S. Dewa Broto told The Jakarta Post that RIM would receive its full operational rights in Indonesia starting Monday.

Gatot said the operational rights were granted after the Canada-based telecommunication company had fulfilled the government's requirements, including the provision of after-sales services.

He said RIM had submitted an official letter on Aug. 31 to the Indonesian Telecommunication Regulator Agency (BRTI) that officially notified the start of RIM's operations in Indonesia.

"The ministry has evaluated the official letter and concluded that RIM has fulfilled all of our requirements."

Indonesia blocked the certification procedure of RIM exports into the country in June, due to the absence of after-sales service facilities.

Gatot said since Aug. 21, RIM now provided its authorized repair facility center for BlackBerry users in North Jakarta, located on Kompleks Ruko Royal Sunter, and in another six branches in the country's larger cities.

In a statement issued Monday, RIM confirmed that the repair center had been operational in Jakarta since Aug. 21 and that it would service all models of in-warranty BlackBerry smartphones sold through authorized channels in Indonesia.

Previously, RIM was hesitant to provide after-sales services in Indonesia as its calculations showed that penetration was still at an early stage with more than 300,000 mobile phones distributed directly or indirectly through local telecommunications operators.

RIM was also concerned about the distribution of BlackBerrys via the black market, which it presumed supplied 80 percent of demand.

Gatot said the need for after-sales services here was crystal clear as the total number of users may exceed one million by the end of the year.

As of the end of the first quarter, BlackBerry had a total subscriber base of 28.15 million worldwide.

Gatot said RIM would still have to go through procedures involving administrative and physical inspection by the Directorate General of Post and Telecommunications at the ministry.

He said RIM also had to meet requirements set by the ministry to obtain certification for telecommunication equipment, including the provision of after-sales services.

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