UAE to suspend key BlackBerry services

Gulf business hub the United Arab Emirates said today that it will suspend key BlackBerry services from October because they are incompatible with local laws and raise security concerns.

The suspension will kick in on October 11 and last until a solution compatible with local legislation is reached, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) said on Sunday in a statement on its website.

It said the decision was taken "after failing to make progress in repeated attempts to make BlackBerry services compatible" with the UAE legal framework.

"Due to its technical nature, some BlackBerry services, like the messenger, email, and web browsing, remain beyond the implementation of local laws," the TRA said.

It said these services could "allow individuals to commit violations without being subject to legal accountability, which would lead to dangerous implications on the social, judicial and national security."

"In the public interest, we have today informed the providers of telecommunications services in the country of our decision to suspend the BlackBerry services of messenger, email and electronic browsing," TRA chief Mohammed al-Ghanem said in the statement.

He said the suspension will remain in force "until a solution compatible with the telecommunications laws in the country is reached."

The move would affect an estimated 500,000 BlackBerry users in a country that has established itself as a major business hub, mainly in the bustling emirate of Dubai.

In anticipation of communication problems that would arise from cutting the service, Ghanem said that providers Etisalat and Du have been told they should provide alternatives.

"Providing alternative offers that would guarantee the continuity of messenger, email and web browsing to personal and business clients is at the top of our priorities," he said.

The UAE's largest provider of telecommunications services, Etisalat, acknowledged the decision and pledged to provide solutions for users.

"Etisalat's focus at the current time is to make sure its valued customers experience continuity of mobility services," the state-majority-owned operator said in a statement.

"In line with its commitment towards its customers, Etisalat will soon be announcing a range of alternative mobility products and services for its existing BlackBerry customers," it added.

Du also said it would respect the decision.

"As a communication provider in the country, we have to always operate within the regulations of TRA," it said in a statement carried by state news agency WAM.

The debate over control of BlackBerry services in the oil-rich state became heated last week amid complaints that data belonging to local users was stored abroad by the BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM).

The TRA said last week that the BlackBerry service could allow people to use some of its applications "inappropriately."

The decision comes as Paris-based media watchdog Reporters with Borders accused the UAE of "harassing and arresting users of BlackBerry Messenger who allegedly tried to organise a protest" against an increase in petrol prices.

"We call for an end to this government witch-hunt against BlackBerry Messenger users who tried to get their fellow citizens to join them in a protest," it said on Thursday, claiming that one of the organisers, Badr Ali al-Dhohori, 18, has been in custody in Abu Dhabi since July 15.

In July last year, RIM charged that an update issued by Etisalat was actually spyware, and that it enabled unauthorised access to information stored on the user's smartphone.

The UAE telecommunications authorities control access to the Internet, filtering out material including nudity, pornography, and some political websites.

Other Gulf states also have problems with BlackBerry services that bypass censorship and surveillance monitoring systems, with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait reportedly voicing concerns.

India, meanwhile, warned on Wednesday that it would shut down the BlackBerry service completely unless encrypted email and other data services became readable by security services.