Cotonou-Benin, Dubai, UAE and Waterloo, ON – Etisalat Benin (operating under the Moov brand), Emitac Mobile Solutions (EMS) and Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today announced the launch of the BlackBerry® solution for Moov customers in Benin.
The BlackBerry solution brings together smartphones, software and services to allow easy wireless access to email, phone, calendar, web, multimedia and other business and lifestyle applications. Customers in Benin will now be able to enjoy the freedom and productivity benefits of using BlackBerry® smartphones to stay connected to people and information while on the go.
“Since its launch Moov has revolutionized the telecommunication market in Benin. Now, Moov is offering a wide range of powerful BlackBerry smartphones at competitive prices, allowing customers to make the most of their time and stay connected wherever they are,” said Mr. Talibi Haidra, CEO of Moov.
"Etisalat Group is committed to providing pre-paid and post-paid mobile subscribers with the very latest services and technologies. The award-winning BlackBerry solution can enable businesses to reach their potential and help consumers enrich their lives," said Mr. Jamal Shamieh, Group Project Manager of Etisalat.
“We are delighted to partner with Moov and RIM to launch the BlackBerry solution in yet another African market. We believe there is great potential for the solution in the region,” said Mr. Babar Khan, CEO of Emitac Mobile Solutions. “EMS’s expertise with the BlackBerry solution has helped Moov rapidly launch the service in anticipation of great customer demand.”
Deon Liebenberg, Regional Director for Sub Sahara Africa at RIM added, “RIM is pleased to work with EMS and Moov to offer the BlackBerry solution to customers in Benin. BlackBerry smartphones are a leading choice for people who want to maintain easy access to business and personal information while on the move and to stay effortlessly connected to colleagues, friends and family.”
At launch, Moov Benin will offer the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9700, BlackBerry® Curve™ 8520 and BlackBerry® Curve™ 8900 smartphones. All three smartphones feature a full AZERTY keyboard.
The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is an exceptional tool for business professionals and power users. It offers top-of-the-line performance, functionality and features with support for 3G HSDPA networks around the world, a next-generation (624 MHz) processor, 256 MB Flash memory, built-in GPS and Wi-Fi®, a 3.2MP camera and a dazzling, high resolution display.
The slim new BlackBerry Curve 8520 is an incredibly approachable smartphone and a great choice for accessing email, messaging (IM, SMS, MMS) and popular social networking sites (including Facebook® and MySpace). It also features rich multimedia capabilities and easy access to music, games and other mobile apps for entertainment on the go.
The BlackBerry Curve 8900 features a wide range of advanced communications and multimedia capabilities. In addition to its advanced phone, email, messaging, organizer, web browser and multimedia applications, it features built-in GPS that supports location-based applications and services. It also allows easy access to social networking sites and has built-in Wi-Fi.
Moov Benin is also offering BlackBerry® Enterprise Server for corporate customers and BlackBerry® Internet Service bundles for smaller businesses and individual users.
BlackBerry Enterprise Server is for organizations that manage their own email servers. The BlackBerry Enterprise Server software tightly integrates with IBM® Lotus® Domino®, Microsoft® Exchange and Novell® GroupWise® and features advanced security and IT policy controls to enable secure, push-based wireless access to email and other corporate data.
BlackBerry Internet Service bundles allow customers to access up to 10 supported corporate and personal email accounts from a BlackBerry smartphone (including most popular ISP email accounts such as Yahoo! Mail and Google Mail), and also supports web browsing and other mobile applications and services.
About Etisalat Benin SA
Subsidiary of the Etisalat Group, an UAE Telecommunication Group, Etisalat Benin launched its activities in Benin under the business name Moov.
Third operator to join the Benin telecommunication market, Moov started with the means needed to achieve its great ambitions: revolutionize the daily life of mobile phone users in all the countries where the brand is present with original and unprecedented offers and highly innovative services.
Moov Benin is worth more than 1.5 million subscribers and its GSM network covers all administrative departments. Since the launch of its activities few years back, Moov Benin has also created thousands of direct and indirect jobs and taken a very active part to the country’s socio- cultural life. Moov has 11 agencies and thousands of points of sale all over the country. For more information, visit www.moov.bj.
About Emitac Mobile Solutions (EMS)
Emitac Mobile Solutions (EMS) is a Dubai based solutions and service provider and RIM strategic channel partner focused on the delivery, implementation and support of BlackBerry® Solutions. Delivered by an experienced team of mobile professionals, EMS provides the mobile operator with sales, marketing, distribution, solution implementation and technical support services for the BlackBerry wireless platform from Research In Motion (RIM). For organizations using the BlackBerry wireless platform, EMS provides the ability to rapidly create, deploy and manage robust client-server wireless applications that reduce an organization's total cost of ownership and significantly increases the value of their mobile technology investment. EMS is the region’s first Mobile Virtual Solutions Provider (MVSP) whose services are delivered through partnerships the company has with mobile operators in the Gulf, North Africa and Eastern Europe. For more information about EMS please visit www.emsmobile.ae.
About Research In Motion (RIM)
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 to data. 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
