Airtel and RIM Launch the BlackBerry Bold 9700 Smartphone in India

Delhi, India - Airtel, Asia’s leading integrated telecom services provider, and Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM; TSX: RIM), a world leader in wireless innovation, today announced the launch of the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9700 smartphone for Airtel customers in India.

Priced at Rs 31990* and available at Airtel retail outlets across India, the BlackBerry Bold 9700 offers a wide range of communication and multimedia features packaged in a sleek and stylish design that will appeal to customers for both professional and personal use.

"Airtel has been a pioneer in providing business solutions to customers and was the first to partner with RIM to launch the BlackBerry solution in 2004. With Airtel's comprehensive nation-wide coverage, customers can stay connected 24X7. Today, BlackBerry smartphones and services have evolved to attract both business users and consumers and we are proud to introduce the new BlackBerry Bold 9700 smartphone to our customers in India. The cutting edge design and enhanced features set will give users of this ultra-stylish smartphone the benefits of staying connected while on the go,” said Raghunath Mandava CMO Airtel.

"We are pleased to launch the BlackBerry Bold 9700 smartphone with Airtel. The new BlackBerry Bold 9700 builds on the success of the original BlackBerry Bold and offers top-of-the-line functionality, features and performance in a sleek and elegant design that serves a broad range of customer interests,” said Frenny Bawa, Vice President, India, Research In Motion.

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 supports 3G HSDPA networks around the world and is equipped with a performance enhancing next-generation (624 MHz) processor and 256 MB on-board Flash memory. The exciting new BlackBerry Bold 9700 features built-in GPS and Wi-Fi®, a 3.2 MP camera with video recording and a sharp, dazzling display. The dark chrome frame and leatherette back add to the new smartphone's sleek and elegant look, while the narrow profile, balanced weight and soft-touch sides allow it to feel incredibly comfortable in one hand.

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 smartphone also supports BlackBerry App World™ which features a broad and growing catalog of mobile applications developed specifically for BlackBerry smartphones. Categories include games, entertainment, IM and social networking, news, weather, productivity and more.

* VAT additional, where applicable.

Bharti Airtel Limited, a group company of Bharti Enterprises, is Asia’s leading integrated telecom services provider with operations in India and Sri Lanka and an aggregate of over 105.20 million customers as of end of June 2009, consisting of 102.37 million mobile customers. Bharti Airtel Limited has been voted as India's most innovative company, in a survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal. Bharti Airtel is structured into three strategic business units - Mobile services, Telemedia services and Enterprise services. The mobile business offers services in India and Sri Lanka. The Telemedia business provides broadband and telephone services in 95 cities, DTH services and has recently forayed into the IPTV services. The Enterprise business provides end-to-end telecom solutions to corporate customers and national and international long distance services to carriers. All these services are provided under the Airtel brand. Airtel’s high-speed optic fibre network currently spans over 104,540 kms covering all the major cities in the country. The company has two international landing stations in Chennai that connects two submarine cable systems - i2i to Singapore and SEA-ME-WE-4 to Europe.

Research In Motion (RIM) 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).