Indonesia still opts for upscale BlackBerry

BlackBerry may have decided to stop designing its iconic cellphones in-house, but that doesn’t mean the gadgets will disappear, especially in places where they’re still popular.

A case in point is the Indonesian wireless company that is already hatching plans to introduce its own version of the keyboard-equipped smartphone for those who can’t live without the device. Indonesians love the BlackBerry.

PT Tiphone Mobile Indonesia Tbk, an affiliate of operator PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Persero Tbk, has struck the first deal with BlackBerry to form a local joint Sventure called PT BB Merah Putih to make its devices in Indonesia.

While the Waterloo company BlackBerry is shifting its focus to software, Indonesia remains one of the company’s biggest markets. BlackBerry in the past launched dedicated phones and apps for the Indonesian market, home to 240 million people.

Under the preliminary deal, BlackBerry phones will be manufactured at a factory owned by a subsidiary of Tiphone Mobile for domestic sales, said Tan Lie Pin, Tiphone’s chief executive officer. Another local company is in talks to join the venture and details are being negotiated, she said.

“More than six million peo-

ple still use BlackBerry in Indonesia and we believe that BlackBerry can still grow in the Indonesian market,” Tan said. “We are very optimistic and excited.”

BlackBerry CEO John Chen said Wednesday that the company would stop designing phones and focus its attention on the more profitable and growing software business.

The company plans to negotiate manufacturing agreements with multiple overseas partners. BlackBerry’s popularity in Indonesia stems from its hugely popular instantmessaging app, BlackBerry Messenger, known as BBM. Many Indonesians still stick to BBM in order to connect with their curated groups of friends and family.