RIM Offers $100 in Free Apps for BlackBerry Downtime

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BlackBerry users around the world were plagued with downtimes in the previous week due to server glitches. To compensate for the trouble, RIM is offering free downloads of $100 worth of apps, which include games, productivity software and photo editing apps.

Research in Motion was besieged with consumer complaints last week, with BlackBerry servers in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas experiencing downtime for three days. This resulted in the loss of various services, including BlackBerry Messaging, email and web browsing. RIM staff worked round the clock to fix the issues, which it explains to be due to a “dual redundant core switch”  failing.

RIM has already taken losses to the tune of $117 million because of the service outages. But to foster goodwill among its user base, co-CEO Mike Lazaridis has announced that the company is offering $100 worth of premium applications for free.

These apps include:

• SIMS 3 and Bejeweled from Electronic Arts
• N.O.V.A., Texas Hold’em Poker 2 and Bubble Bash 2 from Gameloft
• Photo Editor Ultimate from Ice Cold Apps
• DrifeSafe.ly Pro, Translator Pro and DriveSafe.ly Enterprise from iSpeech.org
• Nobex Radio Premium from Nobex
• Shazam Encore from Shazam
• Vlingo Plus: virtual assistant from Vlingo

Aside from free software, RIM’s enterprise clients — which make up a bulk of its business worldwide — will also get one month’s free Technical Support. This means that enterprise clients who are currently enrolled in the service will get a month’s subscription free. New customers can sign up for a one month free trial.

RIM says the free app offer will depend on handset compatibility, BlackBerry operating system, access to BlackBerry App World and country restrictions. Industry analysts say this could be a response to the apparent interest of BlackBerry customers in switching platforms amid the launch of the iPhone 4S.