Research in Motion (RIM) Ltd. will start manufacturing BlackBerry smartphones in Argentina through a deal with Brightstar Corporation, which will invest US$ 23 million. The production begins on October in Tierra del Fuego, and may generate up to 300 jobs.
According to RIM, it is a strategy to support local carriers’ demands and retail stores all over the country. In addition, producing locally may replace US$ 200 million in imports during the first year.
In 2010, 533,000 BlackBerry devices were sold in Argentina, generating US$ 140 million in revenue. RIM holds almost a 50% market share of all smartphones in the country. Brightstar is expected to produce around 750,000 devices in the first year.
The demand in Argentina is growing and the Minister of Economy Amado Boudou, said the government wants to supply that demand. “The national government designed an industrial policy to promote a technology center in Tierra del Fuego, which does not differ and much of what other countries did decades ago and they paid off,” he said in a statement. Argentina President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and Minister of Industry Débora Giorgi were also present at the event.
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