11th Feb 2008 07:01
Vodafone Group Plc11 February 2008 11 February 2008 VODAFONE DEEPENS STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH RIM Vodafone Selects BlackBerry as a Mass Market Consumer Platform Vodafone has today agreed to collaborate with Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq:RIMM; TSX: RIM) on the development of Vodafone consumer services for theBlackBerry(R) platform. This move sees Vodafone add the BlackBerry platform tothe set of preferred consumer operating platforms that it strategicallysupports. This deepening of the strategic relationship between the two companies will seeVodafone and RIM concentrating on driving continued growth in business segments,and specifically, focusing on growing broader adoption in the consumer segment.Vodafone applications and services will also be tightly integrated with theBlackBerry platform providing Vodafone customers with an enhanced mobileexperience. "This strategic agreement aims to deliver an optimised experience - aimedsquarely at the needs of the customer, delivering simple-to-use services andlower costs. We are excited to be working so closely with RIM to develop thisarea," said Jens Schulte-Bockum, Vodafone Global Director of Terminals. "Inaddition to growing the established Enterprise market, we fully expect theappeal of the BlackBerry platform to be strongly adopted by consumers; attractedby best in class messaging and email, internet experience, a range of multimediacapabilities including music and imaging functionality." "The BlackBerry platform continues to resonate strongly with consumers,especially with the introduction of the BlackBerry Pearl and the BlackBerryCurve, and we are pleased that Vodafone has selected BlackBerry as a preferredconsumer platform. We look forward to working with Vodafone and the ecosystem ofBlackBerry application partners to bring new experiences to BlackBerrysmartphones," said David Yach, CTO for Software at Research In Motion. - ends - For Further Information Vodafone Group Media RelationsTel: +44 1635 [email protected] About Vodafone Vodafone is the world's leading international mobile communications group withoperations in 25 countries across five continents and over 252 millionproportionate customers at 31 December 2007, as well as 40 partner networks. Forfurther information, please visit www.vodafone.com The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are theexclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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