RIM to capitulate on India BlackBerry access

RIM is about to provide authorities in India with access to communications sent via the encrypted BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) in a bid to avoid a ban in the country.

Reports in the Mint newspaper in India claim that government sources have said that the two parties have reached an agreement.

"[RIM] has in principle agreed to provide us with recorded data from their servers. They have assured us they will discuss the issue first among themselves and find a way to meet our demands. Later, they would be providing live access to BES," the government is reported to have said.

RIM did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by V3.co.uk.

The move will mean that up to one million BlackBerry users in India could have their communications intercepted and read at any time, a situation that may prompt many customers, especially businesses, to consider alternative handsets.

RIM has spent a good part of the year dealing with similar issues in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have disrupted its attempts to fight back against Apple and Android smartphones.

The Indian government has also said that it may demand information from Skype and Google in its continuing efforts to crack down on terrorism.