Press Release
November 5, 2003
Vodafone UK Adds Colour to 'BlackBerry From Vodafone' Range
Vodafone UK today announced that it is expanding its portfolio of corporate 'BlackBerry® from Vodafone' services with the BlackBerry 7230™ – the first BlackBerry Wireless Handheld™ to feature a customised high resolution colour screen. The BlackBerry 7230 enterprise handheld is priced at £199 per device, and is available to corporate customers now.*
The BlackBerry 7230 will also spearhead the launch of Vodafone's new BlackBerry service for individuals and small businesses, which will be available in 50 Vodafone retail stores from 1 December 2003.** This is a hosted solution that provides people without access to a corporate IT infrastructure with a wireless extension of their ISP email account.
"Since we launched BlackBerry for our corporate customers last year, the demand from all sectors has been phenomenal," said Gavin Darby, Chief Executive Officer for Vodafone UK. "We are focused on using all our resources and expertise to provide the best experience and the most reliable mobile data services to all our customers, whether you work for a multinational, or you work for yourself."
The BlackBerry 7230 has the additional benefit of being tri-band, allowing seamless roaming to the United States. Vodafone UK's customers can also access their corporate email in over thirty countries worldwide including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong and throughout Europe.***
Farid Yunus, Senior Analyst Wireless/Mobile, Yankee Group Europe commented: "When BlackBerry was first launched in the UK, there was a widespread assumption that the biggest market was in the financial and legal sectors. Since Vodafone UK launched its BlackBerry service in 2002 we have seen greater take-up across all sectors, including media, manufacturing and local government. The keys to its success are ease-of-use, rapid deployment times, predictable monthly cost, and extensive GPRS roaming provided by operators like Vodafone UK. The new tri-band version of the handheld should also prove very popular with those travelling frequently to the US."
The enterprise 'BlackBerry from Vodafone' service includes the BlackBerry Enterprise Server™ and other software, combined with GPRS airtime and support provided by Vodafone UK.
The overall package provides a fully integrated 'push'-based mobile data solution for companies with a Microsoft® Exchange or IBM Lotus® Domino™ corporate IT email infrastructure. It comes complete with end-to-end data security and advanced IT tools and management capabilities.
Enterprise end-users are equipped with BlackBerry Wireless Handhelds allowing them to connect with their corporate email, access the company intranet or browse the Internet. The BlackBerry 7230 features a high-resolution colour screen, and, like all BlackBerry Wireless Handhelds, includes an integrated phone, text messaging capability, a browser and personal organiser functionality.
*Pricing includes VAT and is for Vodafone UK Corporate customers only. The standard access charge is £36 per month. This fee includes unlimited emails (3MB usage limit – approximately 2000 emails per month) while in the UK. An additional client access licence is required for companies connecting 20 users or more. Vodafone UK recommends customers contact their service providers for details of specific pricing and availability.
**Device and tariff pricing to be confirmed at launch.
***Vodafone UK has recently introduced a new price of £8.75 per MB for its BlackBerry customers roaming on Vodafone UK partner networks. There is also a flat rate BlackBerry roaming tariff available at £50.
Vodafone UK
Vodafone UK has 13.3 million customers, the largest share of the corporate mobile communications market and is part of the world's largest mobile community. The Newbury-based company offers a wide range of mobile voice and data communications. The Vodafone UK network covers 99% of the population and transmits over 10 million text messages every day. Vodafone UK was the world's first mobile operator to introduce international roaming, and currently offers its customers roaming on 335 networks in 150 countries.
In May 2002, Vodafone UK was ranked top for customer satisfaction in the UK's pre-pay mobile phone sector in a survey by JD Power and Associates. In the Oftel Mobile Network Operators Call Success Rate Survey for April to September 2002, a national call completion rate of 98.3% gave Vodafone the highest number of successfully completed calls and lowest number of dropped calls of all four networks.
Research In Motion
Research In Motion is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, phone, SMS messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications.
RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity. RIM's portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies are used by thousands of organizations around the world and include the BlackBerry® wireless platform, the RIM Wireless Handheld™ product line, software development tools, radio-modems and software/hardware licensing agreements.
Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM).
For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.
The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties of Research In Motion Limited.
