RIM blows hot and cold in India as UAE, Saudi dump Blackberry

Blackberry maker Research In Motion (RIM) has again expressed its unwillingness to part with its proprietary email and messenger services technology to security agencies in India, saying it won't compromise the security of its smartphone.

RIM extended the stand-off in India despite the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia imposing a ban on some of the services of the smartphone that tended to undermine state security. (See: UAE, Saudi Arabia suspend some Blackberry services)

UAE's top telecom service provider, the partly state-owned  Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat), is offering free handsets and discounted service packages to help customers switch.

Etisalat as well as rival du telecom are offering Nokia, Apple, Samsung and LG handsets to lure customers away from Blackberry.

The Canadian company has expressed its "inability" to provide access to the security agencies in India to its emails and messenger services.

RIM said in a statement that while it respected the regulatory requirements of government, it also valued the privacy of its customers and the security needs of corporations.