This article is more than 10 years old

This article is more than 10 years old

The threat of a ban on certain BlackBerry functions has been temporarily lifted in Saudi Arabia, a government regulator revealed today.

Saudi Arabia's Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) said BlackBerry manufacturer Research In Motion (RIM) had successfully completed "part of the regulatory requirements" over the weekend, allowing a temporary reprieve to the ongoing threat of a blockage to services including email and web browsing on the company's handsets.

Authorities in Saudi Arabia had said some BlackBerry Messenger services would be blocked from Friday, 6 August, citing security fears about the way the Canadian technology firm encrypts personal data on its devices. RIM transmits data through servers based outside of the Middle East, making government monitoring of customer content difficult.

"In light of the positive developments toward addressing some of the organisational requirements by the providers, the commission decided to allow BlackBerry Messenger service to continue," the Saudi regulator said in a statement, adding that it would "continue working with the service providers to complete the rest of the regulatory requirements".

A CITC official said on Sunday that RIM and other Saudi mobile firms were testing domestic servers transmitting data in addition to RIM's server in Canada. Mobile phone service providers in the country – including RIM – had been given a 48-hour extension ending Monday night to address security concerns, according to Reuters.

US State Department officials reportedly met with RIM officials yesterday to discuss the deal with the Saudi authorities.

An RIM spokeswoman declined to comment.

The manufacturer had earlier said that "any claims we provide, or have ever provided, something unique to the government of one country that we have not offered to the governments of all countries, are unfounded".

Negotiations are thought to be underway with a number of governments in the Middle East – including the United Arab Emirates, India and Saudi Arabia – with a view to coming to a compromise that would suit the authorities and RIM.

The UAE has said BlackBerry services will be switched off from 11 October in the country if negotiations break down.