The RIM vs India battle over the ‘lawful interception’ of BlackBerry data has been one of the big 3 on-going stories pertaining to the telecom sector. 3G and Mobile Number Portability (or Postponability as we like to call it) being the other two. Thankfully, it seems as if this one is close to some sort of solution.
It seems like BlackBerry users can breathe easy till the end of January 2011. According to a Press Releaseissued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, BlackBerry maker RIM has assured the Government of India that a final solution will be provided by 31st January 2011 for the lawful interception of BlackBerry Messenger services. Reuters pointed out that there was no mention of corporate email services, but goes on to quote an interior ministry source who stated that there is some movement.
RIM, meanwhile has been quick to state that no changes have been made to security architecture for India. At the end of August, the Canadian company had received a ’60 day reprieve’ to provide a solution. Now, at the end of that same period – satisfied with their “interim arrangement for lawful interception of BBM services” the Government of India has decided to set January 31, 2011 as the deadline for them to offer a final solution.
With fortunes declining in the West and the likes of iOS and Android looking set to takeover the smartphone market from them – India remains RIM’s fastest growing market with over a million subscribers. A base that they cannot afford to lose. To be able monitor its corporate email services, the government needs RIM to set up a server in India – something which is far from resolved at this stage. It will be interesting to see how that develops and we should expect some road bumps there.
However, with signs of BlackBerry eventually falling in line, the Government may just have enough impetus to up the ante on Google’s Gtalk and Skype. It has, in the past, demanded that they set up servers in India so that their messages can be lawfully intercepted by Indian Security Agencies. Another story that will be intriguing to watch.
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