Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/2005/05/09/rim_blackberry_3m/

RIM takes Blackberry harvest to 3m users

Up, up and away

By Tony Smith

Posted in Networks, 9th May 2005 11:04 GMT

Research In Motion's Blackberry service now has more than 3m subscribers.

RIM today announced its customer base had passed 2m in November 2004, just under six months ago. Growing subscribers by 50 per cent in such short a space of time is no mean feat. It took the company nine months to add 1m subscribers after it announced in February 2004 it had reached its first million users.

RIM said the new total is in line with its most recent forecast, made early last month, which called for 560,000-590,000 new subscribers to join the service during Q1 FY2005, which ends 28 May 2005.

It bullishly says it is gearing up to cope first with 5m subscribers and then 10m users, although it provided no guidance as to when it might pass these milestones.

But with the NTP lawsuit resolved, RIM is free to license its Blackberry Connect software to US mobile phone vendors as it has been doing in Europe. The vast majority of its subscribers connect to the service using RIM's own hardware devices, but the number using third-party phones and handsets is growing. In March it signed a deal to put Blackberry Connect on future PocketPC phones from popular Taiwanese ODM HTC. ®

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