RIM to move into Australia, Asia

Research In Motion continued its expansion into new countries Monday when it announced its BlackBerry service would be available in Australia and Asia through its partner Singapore Telecommunications' wireless network. The service allows wireless device owners to access e-mail, data and phone capabilities from the same device. The service will be available in Australia and the Philippines through SingTel partners. RIM representatives said availability of service in the new markets would be announced at a later date.

The Waterloo, Ontario-based company also announced on Monday at the CTIA trade show in Atlanta a new color BlackBerry device, the 7750. The Java-based device is expected to run on Verizon Wireless' next-generation CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) 1X network starting in April. The device will come with a color screen and cradle-free e-mail synchronization capabilities.