BlackBerry monitoring deadline in India

The India government has set a BlackBerry monitoring deadline, sending formal notices to the second most populous country in the world’s mobile operators to inform them that they must have the right equipment to monitor Blackberry services before 31st August is over. This will definitely see an increase in pressure on Blackberry manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM) to enable Indian security agencies access to encrypted messages. RIM, of course, still maintains by its statement issued last week, claiming it “cannot disclose confidential regulatory discussions that take place with any government. RIM assures its customers that it genuinely tries to be as co-operative as possible with governments in the spirit of supporting legal and national security requirements, while also preserving the lawful needs of citizens and corporations.” Who will be the bigger loser in the end – the country, or RIM’s bottom line?